Monkey see, Monkey do
by Melee
Summary: Complete, damn it all. Love my Ronins – if you can find them. It’s raining mystical tigers and small possessed deer out there. Even mystical warriors get lost sometimes.
1. Pigs are Smarter than Dogs

(insert disclaimer here)

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Part I: The Long Trip Home

~~~~

The Ronin Warriors are the saviors of this world and in some ways, the saviors of the netherworld. Without them we'd all be dust, emotional-batteries, or mindless tin cans. These guys are the ultimate heroes of our time. They saved the world!

Kinda funny how no one remembers them, ne?

And let me tell you…that can really cause some serious complications. Myself speaking from _per_sonal experience here. I mean, fuck! Things would have been a hell of lot easier if the whole human race weren't suffering from amnesia.

And now, getting past my grumbling, here is the story of how I, the great Mimi Roua the first, set off to save the earth from the depths of evil only to find that someone had already beaten me to it.

~~~~

CHAPTER 1: Pigs Are Smarter Than Dogs

~~~~

With a rush of unfamiliar adjectives – dumbfounded, overwhelmed, flabbergasted – Rowen Hashiba was discovering that there truly were some things he just didn't want to know. Sure, knowledge was all well and good, but who needed the aggravation? Not to mention the headache. 

The morning news flickered across the television screen in front of him as he sank speechlessly into Mia's large, designer couch. "What _is_ this?" he finally demanded of the empty room. "Do they _not_ understand that they're _idiots_? Hello?" The TV didn't answer. With an offended snort, Rowen threw himself back into the brown suede. The full pillows gave way slowly, sucking him in like expensively upholstered quicksand.

While he watched, irritated yet comfortably mesmerized, a few more minutes of the program verified that however ludicrous its content, it was no joke. Infuriated more than usual by the stupidity of the human race, Rowen almost abandoned his cozy haven in search of more worthy food for thought. Instead he kicked his heavy shoes off in the general direction of the delicate, glass coffee table to keep himself distracted. "Hey, you in there! This is a _stupid_ idea!" he snapped again at the T.V. for good measure.

But despite his fervent efforts, the people on the screen continued to ignore his advice. At length, he crossed his arms across his chest, squirming deeper into the luxurious suede and sank into superior pout. "It's frigging _inhumane_!" he muttered, but his heart wasn't in it. 

With a creaking of old hinges, Kento's head popped out the kitchen door, chewing on a caramel apple. "Hey Ro?" he inquired politely between large, slurping bites.

 "What?" Rowen retorted ill-naturedly. 

"Did you just say 'frigging'?" He asked, noisily sucking at the apple's caramel coating.

"…" was Rowen's intelligent reply.

Kento removed the apple from his mouth. With a contemplative look, he drew back his arm and paused for one comment. "Thought so," he said and let fly. The candy apple soared across the room and rebounded off Rowen's head with a loud _thwack_. It bounced off and rolled on the thick carpeting, dust and lint gathering on the caramel coating. Rowen jerked his back his head in disgusted surprise.

"Well, it's justified! And besides," he ran his fingers through his hair, scowling, "That was nasty…no, _that_ was frigging inhumane." Leaning down and discarding his frown, Rowen gingerly picked up the apple from the carpet and shook it at Kento for emphasis. "Is this a healthy snack?"

"_Frigging_ justified?" Kento asked in amusement, ignoring the question.

"…yes! If you don't believe me, why don't you come in here and just _look_ at this nonsense?" Rowen snapped.

Kento wandered over obediently to lean on the back of the couch curiously. Rowen's rather odd and noisy commentary had been directed in the general direction of the five o'clock news. Okay, nothing of interest so far. It wasn't anything of any particular note, not one of those "we interrupt your regularly scheduled broadcast…" so that scratched off one explanation for Rowen's hyperactivity. 

At the moment the screen was showing footage of an older short, curly haired reporter in front of police station on the outskirts of Tokyo, but there was no movement besides the occasional pedestrian. No police tape, no ambulances. Hmm...perhaps Rowen was protesting the station's switch from the cute female reporter to this old guy? Kento himself felt a little put out by it. Probably not Rowen though. Maybe he had eaten some of those bad grapes before Cye remembered to toss them…? 

Then Kento listened to what the reporter was saying and as the expression on his face turned from amusement to astonishment, he had to agree with Rowen….

It _was _ridiculous.

~~~~

Numbly, Sage listened to Minako whine. It wasn't something he wanted to do, but Minako was not the kind of girl to allow herself to be ignored. She was a master at getting what she wanted. No one unfamiliar with Minako would ever know she was whining. She'd  smile with her perfect teeth, and laugh with her practiced laugh. And then, every once in a while, she'd toss her thick, ebony hair with a little "mmph" of frustration so the whole thing wouldn't seem too contrived. Of course, that part was contrived too. It seemed a little too perfect. Recently she'd cut it to shoulder length and when she shook her head the ends who just brush her shoulder, sending shining waves up and down the silky strands. Sage found it strangely engrossing as he stood there seeking some escape. Minako noticed his distraction and seeing it, she tossed her hair again in irritation, momentarily breaking the smooth flow of her self-control. Sage was mildly surprised.

Maybe he really did have the power to annoy her. Maybe he could unnerve her as much as she unnerved him. The sudden thought animated him from his paralysis and he studied her face with new interest, but her black eyes didn't tell him anything. 

Despairing, he fell back into his stupor, listening to the way she drew out his name, giving it two syllables when it only needed one and the way her soft voice disguised the fact that she was whining like a child after the candy bar her mother wouldn't give her. Confidently, she presented him with the easy, the obvious way to solve his problems, but frankly they were problems he didn't remember having before this conversation started, though her voice almost made him wish he did. Certainly he had _some_ problems – everybody did – but these few that she'd thought of didn't ring a bell. Listening to her as she persuaded him, he wondered how he could ever possibly have thought that listening to Minako would make his life easier. 

Sage had problems with girls. So many of them seemed so fond of him, but he just didn't understand what he was supposed to do about it. It wasn't that he was shy exactly. He possessed, among his many talents, perfect social skills. Suffice to say, small-talk wasn't the problem. He could even flirt sometimes. The problem was that he could never get that to work the way it was supposed to because, most of the time, he was being social, flirty even, so that they would _go away_. They didn't quite understand that. 

Okay, so maybe he was a little shy. 

But it was the same way the rest of his dealings with other people. He just didn't make friends, didn't depend on other people. But that was okay. It made things easier. As long as the people he was to associate with – to be "friends" with – were not to mean anything to him anyway, it didn't matter that many of them were vapid and shallow. There simply weren't any standards to be met. He didn't _need_ them after all. So Sage moved up on the social ladder with little effort, completely unhindered by any actual friendship. He had no difficulty associating with the "right" people because everyone met his standards. And yet this did not make Sage appear of any less _depth_ to the people he associated with, though that does not quite seem the right word. He was and always would be something alien and unknown. It was as if his indifference to the people around him lent him an air of casual superiority so unshakeable it had no choice but to become reality.

Girls were the worst part of this. Usually, people were content with his indifference. That he was Sage Date, he was there, and he was acting his part. But some of the girls that liked him weren't content with flirting. To them there was supposed to be something _after_ flirting. There was supposed to be a _relationship_.

And Sage couldn't do that.  When his friends defining characteristic was their unimportance he could not jump from a meaningless activity to something personal. He knew that some of his friends – no, _acquaintances – _sought a partner purely for physical companionship, for added social status, or for – god forbid – fun.   But… Sage had to admit that in the deepest recesses of his mind, places he dared not tread, beyond all his common sense and collected wisdom…. he was a bit of a hardcore romantic. Oh god, not like _Ryo_. But he was, and it would rear its idealistic head whenever the newest dating prospect came by, moaning about true love and eternity. Luckily, he was reasonably able to control it. Er…as long as you didn't count that little incident with Miki last year. Or Naomi. But that was a long time ago. She'd probably gotten the juice stains out of that dress by now, and besides, he'd been – what? – eight? 

Of course, Sage only thought this cynically when he was feeling melancholy, but melancholy had been his almost perpetual state of being until just a short while ago. Until Ryo, Kento, Rowen, and Cye. 

Since then, he had found his present social situation somewhat lacking. He had begun to spend more time in the company of his four than his many. And while he could still flawlessly and effortlessly move among his social companions, their company and his own indifference now grated heavily on his nerves. Having made friends, real friends, true friends, _wonderful_ friends, he could not help but find the unconcern in which he and his acquaintances carried out their "friendships" somewhat revolting. He knew that it was not as if they were completely heartless. To be so cold and callous and still act in a lively, friendly manner so completely opposite required more control of a situation that any teenager could possibly have. Didn't he know that so well? Ha! 

But, even so, his dealings with them lacked any real closeness and he was beginning to think that he could not carry on like this much longer. What's more, his social friends had recently begun to notice something different; that perhaps Sage did not possess the same self-assurance that he used to or that he was not as composed as his reputation required. Oh yes, god forbid the ice should break!

Sage had been caught so off guard by this that he actually felt pressure to act. As he saw it, he would have to do something to placate them soon or abandon them completely. The other option was ridiculous of course. Like he could actually become _friends _with them. You know, _confide_ in them_. _Nonsense. Utter nonsense.

This brings the story back to Minako. Sage's decision was that the solution to his problem was a simple one. He'd do something simple, something that would make them happy, and above all something that would distract them while he decided whether or not he could take any more of this. Yes. He'd do something simple. 

He'd bribe them. With Minako.

Yes, that's right. Sage went out – on a date – with a _girl_. 

And what a disaster that was turning out to be.

~~~~

In the center of the white tiled floor of the super mart two figures stood, staring in awe at the at the high ceilings and endlessly repeating shelves that continued in every direction. Cye, who was an avid fan of small, family-owned grocery stores, was enjoying his foray into big business with a sort of guilty glee. 

"Oooh…there's a swimming pool – hanging from the ceiling!" Yulie cried, pointing happily. Pointing somewhere off to the back of the store. 

"No," Cye corrected him, still in shock at the sheer size. "I think that's the Pacific Ocean. They've got room for it. Egads, is there anything they don't have?" Cye glanced around the aisle in admiration and picked up an item on the shelf next to him. His eyebrows rose in surprise. "Oh dear, the answer appears to be an unfortunate 'yes'." He held the object up the light, squinting uncertainly. "A Pokemon nail file?"

 "Aw, that's nothing," Yulie dismissed it easily. "My Mom bought some of those things that girls use to hold their toes apart while they paint 'em. They were shaped like pigs." He nodded sagely.

Cye tapped his chin and cocked his head slightly to the right. "Hmm…except that with the whole 'this little piggy' rhyme, toes are associated with pigs, after all. So it's not particularly unusual. I don't know. I think my nail file wins."

"They were really ugly pigs though," Yulie insisted. He giggled.

Cye seemed to think about this. "How ugly?"

"_Really_ ugly." Yulie assured him with another giggle. Cye considered that too. "With green and purple _spots_," the boy added. 

"Yes…well… I have some sneakers in those colors. They're really quite nice actually." Cye suddenly brightened and snapped his fingers as though having just remembered something. "Yes, that's it," he said. "My nail file still wins. Sorry." He grinned as Yulie growled and tried to tackle the older boy. 

After it became apparent that Cye wasn't going to so much as lean under his onslaught, Yulie bit his lip and dashed away to the junction at the end of the aisle. He scanned the shelves of the nearby aisles intently, and after a second or two, he lifted his finger and pointed to the aisle opposite theirs, labeled 'pet supplies'. "See that one on the top shelf?" he asked. "It's dog toothpaste!" 

"I don't know…" 

Yulie stomped his foot, causing his short dark brown hair to bounce a little. "Pokemon is a fad! You can find it everywhere! So it's not as weird as dog toothpaste." He looked triumphant.

Cye paused and frowned in thought. "Hmm…" he said. Then he stepped out of the aisle they were in, 'cosmetics', and turned away from the pet supplies. "Hey, Ryo!" he called to a black haired teenager midway down the 'school supplies' aisle. "I need your help!"

Ryo looked up from where he was crouched sorting through notebooks and three-ring binders. "Yeah?" he asked.

Cye smiled angelically. "Would you say dog toothpaste is a fad?" he paused, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "Or not?" Yulie followed, grinning and watching eagerly for Ryo's reaction.

Ryo blinked and paused to give his mind time to make sure he'd heard correctly. Then he gave Cye a look of utter incomprehension to put one in mind of a lost puppy. It was the big blue eyes that did it. They made intimidating evil bad guys frighteningly difficult, but that's another story (or at least another chapter). Cye, rather opposite to what you might think, did _not_ have that problem.  "Do you think he'll figure it out?" Yulie asked softly.

"Not bloody likely." Cye whispered back and bit his lip so that he would not laugh. Yulie covered his mouth with his hands as he giggled.

Still confused, Ryo glanced at the shelves and the ceiling and back at his feet uncertainly, looking for a clue. Finding none, his eyes settled finally and obliviously on the two angelic figures standing at the end of the aisle and watching him innocently. "What?" he asked.  "Um…what?" 

One cue Cye and Yulie both began to laugh outright. They were so taken with their amusement that they were forced to lean on each other on their way back to the cosmetic aisle with its Pokemon manicure accessories and canine dental products. Cye, however, wasn't so overcome that he wasn't careful not to rest too much of his weight on the 9-year-old's shoulders. 

And so, Ryo, still looking not unlike a lost puppy, was left to return to his hunt for school supplies with a vague curiosity as to whether or not Cye should really have thrown those grapes away a few days earlier.

~~~~

Sitting on the couch next to Rowen, Kento rested his chin on his hand. "Think they'll have to wear uniforms?" he asked. "With bows?"

Rowen sat with his hands in his lap, his back pillowed against the fluffy cushions of the couch, and his eyes fixed on the television set. One eyebrow raised, permanently now, he snorted derisively. "I want to see the talking cat," he declared with an air of finality. 

~~~~

"Sah-aaaaage…" Minako sounded exasperated, "you don't have to worry about it. The teach is so all over you. Just talk to him. He'd fix it, easy, you know. Easy. Come on…_Sah-aaage_…" She sighed. Actually _sighed_. Like Sage was being difficult_._ Like Sage was being _unreasonable_. Like he was the one being selfish and obstinate to get _his _way. He knew what he thought of _that_.

Bullshit. 

And the teacher was all over him, huh? Funny, he thought he'd notice if that happened. If she meant the teacher _favored_ him, she could at least say so.  When had she started talking like this? Minako was _intelligent._ She had a _vocabulary._ Really. It was the reason he'd decided to pick Minako. At this he sneered inwardly. 'Pick her', like a customer at a goddamn grocery store checking out the produce. I am Sage, male chauvinistic pig. Hear me belch. Damn it. That wasn't what he'd meant by that. 

Mostly. Obviously, Minako was finally getting to him.

Distracted suddenly, Sage watched Minako toss her hair again, making her pouty, anguished little sound. Feh, he'd liked it better when it was longer.

Despite her present theatrics, Minako really was a smart and actually interesting. It was just that aside from that intelligence, she embodied every bad quality people ever assigned to "popular" kids. Thank god she wasn't blond. Or no, that was an American trend wasn't it? Almost all of the bad qualities then. Shallowness. Acutely egocentric. You know. That type of thing. 

Of course, Sage was painfully aware that the same could be said of him.  Well... he liked to think he was never so visible. Showy. Er…well he never really _tried_ to be. Didn't flaunt himself. Not like Minako. But…the thing bugging him was that if _he_ could be so opposite to what he appeared, or he hoped he was, then couldn't Minako be different on the inside too? Was she really this…superficial? But even so, did whatever inner goodness she might possess really matter if she consistently acted so callous? Could you really be a good person if you so consistently acted like poor one? And maybe most importantly, did he _care?_

Yes. He did. 

Because if he didn't he would be everything Minako seemed to be. A creature of social standing. Of appearances and pretentiousness. Sage sighed. Even if they served no moral purpose, at least his musings on Minako's hidden depths, which may or may not exist, had one practical function in keeping him occupied while Minako complained. 

Complained about his new lab partner. What was she worried about anyway? Sage didn't even _like_ redheads.

~~~~

"I didn't know cats could talk," Kento said. He scratched his head absently, deep in thought.

Rowen shook his head. "No. But it's a requirement. A cute fluffy side kick. You just _can't_ go on without one."

Kento thought about this. "But they're cops. Isn't that why they eat donuts?"

~~~~

Mia leaned back in her computer chair with a relieved sigh. College was turning out to harder than she'd thought. Luckily though, her paper looked like it might possibly be done. As soon as she checked the grammar anyway. And the spelling. Then printed it out, after formatting to the requirements and adding on the footnotes, blah blah, and sticking it in the clear plastic folder. _Then_, she'd be done. And, for the first time in weeks it seemed, she could _turn off the computer_. Ah yes, truly a time for rejoicing. 

She'd go downstairs, make herself some coffee, eat a few of Cye's cookies, not too many, only a dozen or so since she deserved it, and then she would find her book. The one with teenage science fiction heroes, mushy romances, bad grammar, no character growth, and chock full of absolute trash! (She would also avoid any grapes. Cye was very trustworthy in the kitchen -and elsewhere- but she just wasn't ready to trust that particular fruit yet.) After which she could go enjoy the sensation of reading for hours and hours just because she wanted to. Mia let out another happy sigh. 

Then if all that relaxing wasn't taking up too much of her time she might get around to finding out what Kento and Rowen had been going on about for the last twenty minutes.

~~~~

Ryo waited in the check out line and tried to ignore the giggling duo behind him. What's with them? We don't even have a dog! _Pokemon's_ a fad. Not…dog toothpaste.

With a stressed out sigh, Ryo ran his free hand through his unkempt black hair. His other hand held several school binders and notebooks. He sighed again. Their very presence was depressing. Man, he _hated_ school. It was some conspiracy stuffy adults came up with to stress him out, and it was really good at it. He sighed again and shifted his burden to his other arm. Jeez, did that lady in front of him really need all that stuff? She was taking so long! He wanted to have some free time left to him before homework. Man…third year sucked. You really _had_ to do the work. Last year was a lot better. Easier. Oh my god, he had a lot of homework tonight! And it was the first goddamn week! Not to mention that he still needed to pick up Sage from some school thing. (and on the weekend! What was _with _that kid?)Ryo groaned and shifted the notebooks to both hands.

The whispers and giggling behind him reached a climax and he glanced behind him warily. As soon as his head moved, they both shut up and gave him identical angelic faces. It was kinda interesting to watch. Cye was better at it naturally but Yulie made up for that by being younger. Then Cye smiled that trustworthy, innocent smile of his and leaned forward to put something on top of Ryo's things. "For Mia," he said. Then he stepped back. 

Oh yeah, intimidating bad guys? No problem. 

Ryo just looked at him.  The edges of Cye's lips started to twitch. Yulie buried his face in the back of Cye's sweater to smother his laughter. With the reluctance of a death row convict walking towards the electric chair, Ryo slowly - ever so slowly - began to look down. He was not feeling optimistic, and Cye, being the considerate soul that he was, did not disappoint him. Ryo gave a dejected sigh. The lost-puppy look was back. You see, there was a thing sitting on his binders. It was weird. It was foamy. It was a pig.

And it had purple spots. 

~~~~

"Hmm…Donuts _would_ make them round and that's _kind of_ cute sidekick-like, I mean look at Luna's head, but… Naw. Still doesn't work."

"No?" Kento took a bite of the caramel apple he'd retrieved. (Don't worry. He cleaned it off first. I mean, he'd washed his shirt just last week…Clean. Right.)

Rowen squinted one eye and stared at the ceiling in deep concentration, taking his eyes off the TV for the first time in twenty-five minutes. "Nope. Because, you see, even though pigs are smarter than cats and dogs, they just aren't as appealing…" 

Kento look surprised. "Pigs are smarter than dogs, no joke? Man, what a rip off."

Rowen turned his head slowly away from the television to face his friend. "Now, Kento," he said sternly, "it's what's inside that counts." The he gave a cough that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

"Dude!" Kento said and started to laugh. Rowen tried to maintain his severity but it was an uphill battle.

A battle he would have shortly lost to laughter except that at that moment Mia entered the room with a stack of paper in hand. Catching the end of the broadcast, (the one that was playing over and over since Rowen had taped it though Kento hadn't noticed that yet --something in the apple?) she stared at the TV open-mouthed, and said something neither of them ever expected to hear out of her mouth. Or anyone else's in polite conversation. No, it didn't involve foul language. It went like this:

"Leaping lizards!"

End Chapter 1.

~~~~

To the reader:

A few years ago, I decided to write a fan fiction because I was obsessed with Ronin Warriors. This did not work out well. It was long, it was badly written, it was pointless and unoriginal, and hell, it even had a Mary Sue.

Luckily I have stopped _that_, and even changed my name so none of you people can ever connect the two of us again (though it is still out there --somewhere on the world wide web).

Now, some couple of years later, I've – foolishly – decided to try again. This is the first chapter of said second try. It's an experiment and subject to removal or revision at any time (I've already done so once). I'm not objective enough to judge my own work, so I'm putting it to you. 

Is this thing worth it?

Melee


	2. Muchas Pooches

Monkey see, Monkey do  
  
Part I: The Long Trip Home  
  
  
  
~~~~  
  
And so the plot thickens.  
  
Eh…Not really. Actually, it's rather boring. There's nothing supernatural at all. Even the last scene of this chapter is just two old men acting paranoid. How is this supposed to tell me that I need to save the world? Isn't this the story of how I, Mimi Roua, set out to save the world? WHERE am I?  
  
Imagine a great big sigh here. Did I forget to tell you I wasn't in this story? Yes, poor Mimi. I know I called it my story before, but you'll have to forgive me. I hate admitting it, but I didn't even meet the first of these crazy people until they were already up to their ears in their own problems. And they did not take well to an idealistic girl striding into their midst. Egads. At least I made it to Mia's Christmas card list. (I'll leave out the "before they kicked me out of the house" part from the end of the previous sentence. It's too embarrassing to admit!)  
  
Oh stop listening to me. Go on, read it! And no, this chapter has nothing to do with dogs. Much less "muchas pooches". What a ridiculous title.  
  
~~~~  
  
CHAPTER 2: Muchas Pooches  
  
~~~~  
  
Kento choked on his half eaten caramel apple. Rowen put on his sunglasses so he could look disdainfully at Mia over the top of them. She watched them both innocently. "Leaping," Rowen paused for effect, "lizards?" he repeated.  
  
Mia sat on the couch between the two of them, ignoring the skeptical eyes following her. "Well, it's appropriate," she said defensively. Rowen just watched her over the rims of his glasses. "Isn't it?" she sniffed defensively.  
  
Kento got over his apple problem and exclaimed, "Holy smokes, Batman!"  
  
~~~~  
  
Cye drew in a deep breath, savoring the sweet and familiar smells. He sighed happily, feeling himself relax, and turned in a contented circle just to take it all in. "Ah…home," he murmured blissfully. What more could he want?  
  
Behind him Ryo groaned, "Oh come off it, Cye. Can't we just get the groceries and go?"  
  
"It's not my fault I just got the message on my cell." Cye hummed happily under his breath, "Farmers' market la la la…"  
  
"Yeah, farmers' market and Cye sitting in a tree, K-I-S-"  
  
"LA LA LA…they probably didn't have any kiwis at the other place, okay? And besides this is better…la la la…"  
  
"Kiwis? Why do we need kiwis?"  
  
"Sage. He's weird about essays," Cye said, still turning happily in circles. He closed his eyes and flapped his arms bit for effect.  
  
"Nyeh…" Ryo groaned. Essays already?  
  
"Oh come off it, Ryo. Can't we just get the groceries and go?" Cye parroted. Ryo glared at him. Cye stuck his tongue out. "Pouters never prosper, you know."  
  
"That is so not the saying," Ryo pouted. "And I am not pouting!"  
  
"Fine, but could you 'not pout' a little closer to the fruits, maybe?" Cye snapped, halting his antics and stalking into the market with an air of offended pride.  
  
"Why would there be kiwis in a farmers market, anyway? Since when does anybody grow kiwis around here?" Ryo moped, following Cye.  
  
Cye ignored him.  
  
~~~~  
  
Ah, so that's it.  
  
Sage remembered that he probably shouldn't laugh. So he didn't. It was a struggle, but he persevered. He did, however, drop his face into his hands wearily. But he did not laugh. Minako, Minako, Minako. Suddenly things were clearer. They made sense, in a Minako sort of way. It was a momentous moment as, surpassing many trials and tribulations, she had finally, finally, gotten to the point.  
  
It must have been a giant of a bush for it to take her this long to beat all the way around it. Certainly it was a scraggly and twisted piece of plant life. Where, oh where, did Minako get these ideas?  
  
As it turned out, Minako was worried about his new female lab partner. Or rather, what he would do with his new female lab partner. And the reason she was worried? Was his partner tall, thin, and attractive? Bosomy and voluptuous? Or at least flirtatious? Not likely. She was a short redhead with too many freckles to be beautiful, too round a nose to be pretty, and short-cropped hair that hadn't been brushed for about a year. She overreacted to everything and seemed to be the type to keep cheap romance novels on the bedside table and things like Steinbeck as never-read heirlooms collecting dust in the attic (not that Minako wasn't showing signs of that particular illness right now). Quite frankly, Sage would rather have a conversation with Minako. Maybe.  
  
Minako didn't really think that girl was his type did she?  
  
Oh, no. Of course not. Minako had an even deeper more solid reason that Sage and his freckled lab lover were meant to be together. You see, the one fact that has not been previously mentioned about the lovely red-haired seductress is that…  
  
She was deaf. Yes, that does make sense, doesn't it?  
  
The root of the problem was that Minako knew the whole Romeo and Juliet story far too well. There were hundreds of movies and books following that same theme, forbidden love and all that jazz. Minako loved them all. When it came to chick flicks, she was one hardcore chick. And so when this unimpressive redhead became her Sage's lab partner, Minako's brain started working. It would seem so perfect for her Sage to fall for the little Cinderella dressed in rags. The girl's deafness was just icing on the cake. An outcast against her will! What better foundation for a fabulous love story? Epic, totally epic.  
  
Except that if that fabulous, epic love story happened, Minako'd be out of a boyfriend. Not being in nature a stupid girl, Minako was aware that her little fling with Sage wasn't exactly on stable ground, a fact of which she wasn't fond. She liked going out with Sage. One had to admit he was easy on the eyes (that was putting it lightly), but even ignoring his individual advantages, there were perks that encompassed the entire social plane. Everyone was envious. It was too much fun to share in those admiring glances, which were of course deserved.  
  
Minako herself really did admire Sage; it was a hard feeling to avoid. So naturally she was upset when he seemed fated to be unfaithful. And of course, she'd stalked over here now in a righteous tizzy to give him a good dressing down for his wandering eye (even if it hadn't wandered yet) while at the same time trying not to admit her exact reasoning behind it. It did sound a little stupid after all when you said it aloud.  
  
And so now you understand everything. Clear as Waterford crystal. You see what had put Sage's head in his hands, anyway.  
  
But, forget about all that for a second. It was 4:30 and Sage should have escaped this twenty minutes ago. He growled. Where the hell was Ryo?  
  
~~~~  
  
"Sooo…this is some funny stuff, but why's it been on for twenty minutes, guys?" Mia asked and tapped her fingernails against her front teeth, causing a peculiar clacking sound that was starting to wear on Rowen's nerves. His eyebrow started twitching from the combination of the idiocy to be found on the television and that constant "clack, clack, clack".  
  
"Uh, good point. Man, why has it been on for twenty minutes? Ne, Ro?" Kento took another slobbering bite out of his caramel apple.  
  
"…" Rowen said, eyebrow twitching.  
  
"You know," Kento chewed thoughtfully, "that's the second time he's said that."  
  
~~~~  
  
"My god, does it stink in here," Kayura said, lifting one hand to tap her nose. At the movement, the long sleeves of her kimono shifted, flashing an image of white lilies on violet silk. "It really does!" she repeated happily. For some reason Sehkmet could not understand, she was delighted with the idea. Standing uncomfortably in his gray western suit, he wished he had the gall to wear the clothes he was used to, no matter how out of place they would look here. Kayura did not have that problem, obviously. She was quite comfortable in her exceedingly formal kimono, which would have looked out of place even in a Japanese mall. Which was a good point, why weren't they in Japan? Damn Dais to hell. This was probably his fault.  
  
It wasn't the shopping that bothered Sekhmet particularly. He was okay with taking Kayura shopping, really he was, even if there were so many people. He'd been worried and a little nervous beforehand, but that was only natural. He was bringing Kayura to a mall. Since she'd brought up the idea of a trip to the mortal world last week, he'd gotten no peace until he'd agreed to go with her, and he had been in a perpetual state of puzzlement ever since. She was simply not the type for girly pursuits (usually) and one had to shudder when wondering just why she'd been so insistent about coming. True, she'd supposedly been once before. Rumor said it was brief, semi-disastrous, and chaperoned by Kento Rei Fuan of all people.  
  
She obviously hadn't learned much from the experience. Of all the things to wear to a modern department store… Kimonos were not as common even in Japan as they had once been, and Kayura's was a magnificently made thing of elegance that would have turned heads in the Emperor's court. It was beautiful, but did she have to wear it now? Apparently the answer was yes. She'd always been flashy under…Talpa… and it seemed that…Talpa's…death had not affected her as much as it had Sekhmet. The thought irritated him. It was a feeling akin to jealously and he disliked it intensely.  
  
Kayura, of course, seemed unaware of any of his discomfort. Bouncing happily on her toes to see over the crowds, the small woman twisted around trying to look at every part of the big store at once. The roar of the mob was deafening and he barely heard her when she spoke, clutching his arm excitedly.  
  
"Isn't this fantastic?" With a weary sigh, Sehkmet leaned down until his lips were next to her ear and his green hair brushed her face.  
  
"Has it occurred to you recently that I tried time after time to kill you less than a year ago? And that you yourself were trying to kill these people here?" Sehkmet whispered into her ear. "Should you be a little more…subdued in my company and theirs?" Around him, harried shoppers pushed past them, brushing against his arms and shoulders. He hated it. The way they crowded in so close. So many living, breathing things trying to suffocate him. One woman tripped over him and nearly fell. When she also kicked him in the shin, he almost broke something. Her arm. Her leg. Her skull. It was grossly unfair that Kayura, by far the less experienced of the two, was more comfortable than he was.  
  
Kayura laughed at his morbid suggestion and patted his arm reassuringly. Sekhmet straightened and pulled away from her in annoyance. "Of course not! Later maybe, but not now..." she smiled at him. "Or is this infernal stench really you trying to poison me again?" She shook her head disapprovingly. "So many people, Sekhmet…" Kayura's sweeping hand gestured to the crowds surrounding them in the big room, her violet sleeve rustling. "You'd never get away with it," she whispered conspiratorially.  
  
Sekhmet's gaze followed Kayura's sleeve and he inspected the rushing people more closely. If her clothing hadn't had the entire store staring at them, this happy-go-lucky mood would. Didn't the people see how…weird it was? Sekhmet tugged on his tie irritably. Yes, there were several poorly hidden, interested gazes at Kayura's style of dress, but luckily it was just friendly interest; nobody seemed ready to strangle her. Except for himself. Maybe Dais drugged her dinner? But, no that was Sehkmet's forte. Well, it was Dais' fault somehow. He just had to figure out the how.  
  
"It's perfume, Kayura," he told her severely. "It's common in these…types of places." He waved his hand at the crowds much like she had but the only sleeve that rustled was an obnoxious western thing. "And I think you're breathing in too much of it." He noticed a brightly designed sign above one of the clothing racks. "Back to…school… sale?" he thought it said, but his English was horrible. He glanced at his watch. Did things wind down after four o'clock, or would more people be coming? It seemed like the people were beginning to close in on him. His heart began to race and he felt a headache starting. Angrily he ordered himself to calm down.  
  
"It was a joke. I know what perfume is!" she retorted. Then suddenly her excitement deflated and she turned serious. "Today, I am going to relax, Sekhmet," she told him. "Just this one day."  
  
Relax? This was relaxing? The shouts and loud footsteps of the people surrounding him pounded in his ears. There were too many people.  
  
She said nothing more for a few seconds, but Sekhmet did not think she was done, and she wasn't. "It's a vacation. A more modern word, I think. You know all the others; this one is not new?" Her words had that particular very capable and quietly superior Kayura tone. Sekhmet was reminded momentarily why he had wanted her dead not so long ago; he did not like women who made him nervous.  
  
To forget about his uneasiness and growing claustrophobia, he looked disdainfully over the counters and their salesmen. "Here?" he asked with a derisive snort. Abruptly, Kayura's expression broke again into her brilliant, child-like smile. She turned to examine some hideous but very sparkly jewelry in a glass case, and Sehkmet found himself staring at the elaborate flower-like knot of her obi. She surely hadn't tied that without help, but Kayura didn't keep any servants. So who could have helped her? Sehkmet himself had had many; he was the Warlord most lost in his luxuries. But he'd dismissed all of them after his "conversion" so they hadn't tied Kayura's obi. Cale had kept two, but he'd stormed off that night three months ago (and had yet to return) so those were gone and had not tied Kayura's obi either. Sehkmet's eyebrow twitched.  
  
Dais!  
  
He had any number of lackeys, but they were often out on various errands and were demons of the sort that could hardly be considered housemaids. Yet…he did have that one woman who excelled at disguise. Of course, she'd know how tie an obi. Ah. Dais was going to die sometime in the near future. Yes…this was all his fault.  
  
"Yes. Right here! Oh, where are we again, Sekhmet?" Kayura interrupted his thought, batting her eyes at him. Sekhmet stared. At least she hadn't done anything to her hair. It was impressive enough alone; there was just so much of it. He gripped his brown tie until his knuckles turned white. How could she do this? Sehkmet did not like being irritated; in fact, he didn't much like emotions at all anymore. But Kayura was…was…deliberately provoking him. There was no other explanation.  
  
He knew she hated his new brooding tendencies, but it wasn't as if she didn't indulge in it herself. The days under Talpa were not exactly a happy time and the four of them were hardly the victims. They were the aggressors. Did she expect him to revel in it? To be glad? He hardly considered himself a good man, but he would be even less of one if he so blatantly ignored what he'd done.  
  
Then her question penetrated to his distracted brain.  
  
"You don't know?" he finally asked her, dreading the answer. Kayura shook her head gleefully. "But… you made the gate," he insisted. It was so hot in here; his hand reached up to loosen his tie. And it stank. Of sweat and Coco Chanel.  
  
"Oh, but that was random!" Kayura was saying. She took his hand and joyfully pulled him deeper in the store and the people closed in around them. Around him. "If I'm so old fashioned everywhere, what does it matter where among these mortals I should go?" Kayura smiled again, voice sounding oddly lilting and poetic. Only Sekhmet's rather recent habit of an emotionless face (he had been much too…expressive…under Talpa to be able to tolerate similar behavior now with Talpa finally gone) prevented him from yelling in the middle of that crowded human store. He tugged violently on his tie with his free hand and tried to be calm.  
  
Kayura was being…he could not think of the proper word. Surely, if modern men could have all the ridiculous junk that filled this place, they would have a word that fit Kayura now. What was it again? Ah, yes…ditzy, a un- Kayura-like thing. Yet she was being scary also, a known Kayura attribute.  
  
So maybe she was just trying to irritate him. If brooding annoyed her, he should have expected her to do something about it. She was Kayura, wasn't she? And he could just hear Dais mockingly suggest that Kayura shock him out of his pouting, (because Dais would call it pouting, that twisted, self- deluding lout) maybe with a night out on the town. Of course, he could not be certain that that had happened, and to tell the truth, Kayura was unlikely to listen to Dais if he had said something like that. She was unlikely to listen to him if he said anything for that matter. The newest Ancient did not get along well her Warlord of Illusion. It was probably because he did not take to her mothering as well as Sekhmet or Cale.  
  
Well…maybe she'd taken Dais' joking seriously out of spite. Kayura didn't often spite (it was beneath her), but for Dais…anybody would make an exception. Of course, he still didn't actually know that any of that had happened.  
  
But now what was she going to do? It would, despite the ridiculous acting so far, have to be straightforward as Kayura was a straightforward person. Even this obnoxious behavior was rather transparent in its attempt to provoke a response. Hmm, get him roaring drunk maybe? Sekhmet had been roaring drunk before. It was one of the few times he'd been to the mortal world without Talpa's express orders --and not intentionally either. He'd gotten drunk in the castle and woken up in southern France. Odd that.  
  
Just then Kayura poked his ribs and he jumped, an iron-like grip on his tie. They had somehow gotten down to the basement without him noticing. The unknown mystery of the escalator had not daunted Kayura. At least the crowds had thinned out down here. Sekhmet felt himself relax minutely. Then he noticed Kayura. Her smile was bigger and she was looking even more simple-minded.  
  
Oh gods, he thought, she is trying to provoke me out of silence and I've just made it worse by thinking too much. He shuddered at the idea.  
  
If nothing else, this explained what the two of them were doing in London in the middle of Harrods when the two of them together couldn't speak more than a dozen words of English. Add to this his fear of crowds, and Kayura could not have found a better way to discomfort him. Oh sure, Sekhmet knew all about this modern world. He knew the ways the language had changed, the dress, the fashion, and the west. That didn't mean he had to like this disgusting suit though! But he hated crowds. And when he'd chosen which language he wanted to learn, he'd chosen French because it sounded nice. English was so ugly. So by some evil turn of luck with her "random" gate, Kayura had chosen the best place for him to be as completely out of place as she was (and somehow she pulled this off so much better than he did). It just made irritating him so much easier.  
  
Wait a minute…  
  
Damn, she really had this all planned out didn't she?  
  
~~~~  
  
"Uh…Cye?" Ryo hesitantly asked the boy walking in front of him.  
  
"What?" Cye replied irritably, stopping and glancing sharply around, possibly for any stray kiwis he might grab.  
  
"Where's Yulie?" Ryo asked and glanced around also but was worried not annoyed. Stray kiwis don't look much like stray little boys.  
  
Cye stared at Ryo. "Oh bloody-" he said but did not finish his statement.  
  
~~~~  
  
Sage had noticed Minako was staring at him a little while ago. She'd been doing it for about thirty seconds so far, he guessed, assuming she been staring as long as she hadn't been talking. Staring like he'd grown another head. Think quick, Sage; what abnormal things have you done recently? Or Maybe Minako is crazy. He dropped his head back into his hands, and his mind caught up with him.  
  
Wait for a second, please, head in hands? Oh yes, that had been his reaction to Minako's unique logic. He'd growled too hadn't he? Yes, he'd growled at Ryo for being late. For still being late, come to think of it. Remembering this, Sage growled again. Then his mind caught up with him for a second time.  
  
That's right. He had done something abnormal, hadn't he? He'd shown more emotion than your average ice cube. Tsk tsk, how silly of him. Having figured that out…  
  
Sage growled again because it felt good.  
  
~~~~  
  
Cale glared at the contents of the cardboard box on his counter top. Or more correctly, at the contents that were not in his cardboard box. Namely the phone and the numbers of those few people he would like to call. Here he was, living in an apartment in St. Louis, Missouri. Modern St. Louis, Missouri, with millions of average humans who existed to confuse 400 year- old Warlords who were trying to be average too. They and dishwashers were the bane of his existence. His clothes were dirty too, but he couldn't remember how he was supposed to work that infernal machine either. And now that he'd remembered about the phone and calling for help…the damn thing wasn't there!  
  
Cale let out a feral growl and ripped the box in two just to show he could. A dozen or so hardback books spilled out, his birthday present. The only part of his birthday present he'd kept anyway. The rest he'd thrown away, though he should probably have given it to Wildfire to incinerate it. Kayura…that woman should never have been allowed in a mall. More proof that Ronins have the IQ of a flea for taking her there. At least most of these books were in Japanese. Did she expect him to learn Chinese? He picked up a book. Or French? Where was France these days anyway? For that matter, where was St. Louis? It was stupid, stupid of him to be doing this. He threw the French book at the counter. Sekhmet speaks French. I don't know why, but he does. Not me. And I don't even speak much English. What am I doing here?  
  
The book knocked a stack of paper forms onto the floor next to the books. He picked them up and read them again even though he knew what they were. Cale growled again, glaring at one of the blanks. "I don't have a social security number, you blasted thing! Or a visa, I tell you! I have a Warlord of Illusions who owes me a favor. THAT'S why I'm here." Somehow Cale mustered enough self-control not to crumple up the forms and instead put them neatly back on the counter. Then he stalked off his bedroom and began ripping through the clothing Sekhmet had helped him pack, looking for something clean. None of it was. He kicked the suitcase and went to rummage in the closet.  
  
Five minutes later he was sitting cross-legged on the bed dressed in ancient hakama and a grateful dead t-shirt, steadfastly ignoring the world in general and specifically those damned bears marching over his chest.  
  
~~~~  
  
"You taped it? Why?" Mia asked incredulously, leaning towards Rowen as if she wouldn't be able to hear him from where she was.  
  
"Hold on, that takes forethought right?" Kento snickered. "Heh heh, Ro's done research."  
  
"But on what?" Mia turned her head to Kento.  
  
Kento grinned. "Sailor girls."  
  
"Oh? Is that was he does on that computer…I never knew." Mia clacked her fingers against her teeth.  
  
"Wait a minute! WHAT?" Rowen cried, blushing heavily.  
  
Kento choked on his apple again.  
  
~~~~  
  
Great, faded tapestries of vast battles hung against every wall of the room, the colors flickering in the weak candlelight. One tapestry swayed slowly as a tall, white-haired man reached out to touch it. With a pale finger, he traced the embroidered scales of a sleek dragon, its black neck arched gracefully as it engulfed a group of weary samurai in red fire.  
  
A knock sounded at the door and the finger stopped its tracing, its owner turning slowly to the door. "Come in," he said. Glancing back once at the dragon on the cloth, he sat gracefully at the oaken desk in the middle on the room. The door opened, admitting another man who might have been tall if he were not slouched. The new man limped slowly to the desk. His right arm was deformed and short; he held it clutched close to chest and the fingers of the hand, though strangely long and elegant, twitched uselessly, not under his control. He watched the sitting figure closely through the stiff bangs of his dirty gray hair and his fine lips twisted into a sneer. "Should I sit?" he asked, voice thick with amusement.  
  
The man behind the desk smiled and ran his finger over the wood grain of his chair. It was simple and unadorned but finely made of a beautiful red wood. The redwood chair was very comfortable. The man's smile got bigger. It was also the only chair in the room. "Yes," he said. "Sit anywhere you like."  
  
The other man bounced almost franticly from foot to foot. "Ah, ah, ah, now," he said and cackled.  
  
The other man's smile disappeared after a moment. He clasped his hands across his lap and regarded the man with the deformed arm seriously. "Fitz," he said.  
  
Fitz cackled once more, loudly. "Ha ha. You've said it now!"  
  
The man in the chair leaned forward and rapped his hand against the desktop once, loudly. "Fitz," he said again, "I don't have the time today."  
  
Fitz smiled now. "Not the time? Not a problem of mine," he muttered, but his expression turned serious. "Fine, fine." He reached into a pocket on the front of his soiled shirt with his left hand and took out a necklace. It was a pendant, a small square of glass half an inch thick, held by a silver clamp on a thick and tarnished silver chain. He placed it on the desk letting the chain pool into pile over the pendant. His hand moved away for a moment but then moved back to cover the necklace completely, blocking it from the man at the desk.  
  
Perhaps Fitz was worried that the man would take it before Fitz wanted him to, but the white-haired man paid it little attention. Instead he remained leaning towards the desk, watching Fitz, his face wiped clean of expression. Fitz still crouched forward, his good hand covering the necklace. They remained that way for some time until Fitz broke off the eye contact and snarled angrily. "Its immobile. Nobody's leaving the grove, Dais," he said. "You know that." He swayed nervously. "Yes."  
  
Dais smiled though his single eye still watched Fitz cautiously. Suddenly he sat up straighter. "Things can change. Thank you, Fitz," he said. With one hand he reached for the necklace that Fitz's hand still covered. Fitz, noticing the action, jerked his hand backwards as if he would be burned. Dais took the necklace and placed it around his own neck. "A pleasure," Dais murmured absently. Which was Dais' version of "It's been a pleasure" meaning "Good bye right now." Fitz knew Dais speak well. He backed quickly but awkwardly away from the desk and limped out of the room shutting the door carefully behind him.  
  
Sitting at the desk, Dais touched the glass at his neck and turned to smile at the dragon on the wall.  
  
  
  
End Chapter 2.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~  
  
A few years ago, I decided to write a fan fiction because I was obsessed with Ronin Warriors. This did not work out well. It was long, it was badly written, it was pointless and unoriginal, and hell, it even had a Mary Sue.  
  
Luckily I have stopped that, and even changed my name so none of you people can ever connect the two of us again (though it is still out there -- somewhere on the world wide web).  
  
Now, some couple of years later, I've --foolishly-- decided to try again. These are the first chapters of said second try. It's an experiment and subject to removal or revision at any time. I'm not objective enough to judge my own work, so I'm putting it to you.  
  
Is this thing worth it?  
  
  
  
Melee  
  
  
  
Jeni: I hope there is more of a plot and thanks for expressing essentially the same opinion about Sage's character here that I have myself. Unfortunately, I have no idea what to do about it so maybe you will enjoy this anyway. And yes, it is my belief that Kento is smarter than Ryo. I mean, watch the show. Which one is the real idiot?  
  
The grapes and the other more random bits are strange products of my deranged, sleep-deprived mind. Ignore them.  
  
Dawning light: (innocently) What news broadcast? (slightly manic snickering is heard)  
  
Other people: Thanks. Here's chapter 2… Unfortunately the cast of people you've never seen before has gone up by one. (Sorry). Swear to god Sage's lab partner will neither become his one true love nor even make an appearance. 


	3. Neolithic

Monkey see, Monkey do  
  
Part I: The Long Trip Home  
  
  
  
~~~~  
  
Golly, I bet you were dreading this. You're crouched under the bed (with a laptop) cringing in horror at the approaching nightmare. The anxiety is making your hands tremble and your hair stand on end. But…never fear. Mimi isn't here.  
  
Ha! Idiot got herself locked in the closet.  
  
~~~~  
  
CHAPTER 3: Neolithic  
  
~~~~  
  
"Yulie! Psst…Yulie!" The harsh whisper sounded from behind an old, dented van. Yulie started in surprise as he walked past it, trailing behind Ryo and Cye. He stopped with one foot raised in mid step and glanced around curiously. He couldn't see anyone in the field but himself and his older friends. There were several cars since the empty field also served as the parking lot for the farmers market.  
  
"What?" Yulie asked softly, searching for the source of the voice. He began to inch cautiously around the van. "Who's there?"  
  
The voice giggled. "Chou!" it answered. Yulie gasped in happy recognition.  
  
"Chou!" he cried happily. No longer a whisper, the cry echoed loudly through the lot. Yulie ran to the other side of the van and grinned and at the young boy crouched there. Chou put a finger to his lips and shushed Yulie.  
  
"Don't shout!" he admonished Yulie in a whisper, crouching farther down against the van. "Somebody'll find us."  
  
Yulie blinked in puzzlement at this. "Who?"  
  
Chou fixed him with a withering glare. "Your parents," Chou told him.  
  
"Oh…" Yulie said, feeling a little inferior in the face of Chou's ready condescension. "But…my parents aren't here. There's just Ry-" Chou waved his hand, dismissing that.  
  
"Fine. Babysitters," Chou agreed. "Now come on." He turned around and started sneaking behind parked cars, away from the farmers market. Yulie glanced a little nervously back towards Ryo and Cye but he could not see them from behind the van.  
  
"But…" He turned back to Chou, who had stopped momentarily and was watching him. Chou grinned suddenly and Yulie had to grin back. Any hesitation gone, he followed Chou happily as the two boys took off across the parking lot.  
  
~~~~  
  
Sage pushed open the double doors and walked into the chilly September afternoon. The day was overcast and dreary and he felt it suited his less than cheerful mood. Minako followed behind him, catching the door before it closed and carrying her science book in her other hand. The other of the two doors banged shut loudly, the only sound. The two stood under the overhang, watching the empty parking lot in silence.  
  
"Sage?" Minako asked, breaking the quiet.  
  
Sage shifted in slight annoyance. He didn't really want to talk to Minako. "What?" he asked, his voice belying his irritation. Minako laid her graceful hand on his shoulder.  
  
"You seem stressed," she whispered in her velvet voice. "Why?"  
  
"My ride is late," he explained curtly.  
  
"Oh," Minako said and rested her chin on top of her hand, leaning her head against his cheek. "I'm getting picked up in an hour…" she offered.  
  
Only rigid self-control kept Sage from flinching away from her. Under different circumstances her contact might have been comforting -- like if she were a different person-- but now he couldn't stand the touch. "I'd like to leave," he said and there was a hint of harshness to his voice. "Now."  
  
Minako pulled her hand from under her chin and wrapped it around his arm. She turned her head so her cold nose was pressing against his cheek. "Oh Sagie," she said and giggled a bit. "Aren't you being a little silly?" It was so…girly. So perfectly girly. Minako was wonderful at that. Every single one of her words and actions fit perfectly into that into that pink and lacey image. It was perfect.  
  
Sage had never before encountered anything so contrived.  
  
"Me?" he asked after a second. Minako pulled her head back, to Sage's great relief, so she could look him in the eye.  
  
"What? Did you want to get away from meeeeee?" she teased. It was so cute; she even batted her eyes at him. He nearly jerked his arm away.  
  
"Yes," he wanted to say, "I want to get away from you." But he didn't. "Minako," he admonished instead. Minako paused and then her arm unwound from his. He looked at her curiously.  
  
"Of course, you do," she sighed and her breath caught. "I just knew-"  
  
Sage was startled enough by the change in mood that he snapped, "Minako!" She could not possibly have guessed what he was thinking, could she? His sharp exclamation seemed to astonish her as well because she forgot her shyness and jerked her head up to stare at him in surprise. Sage took a breath. "What are you talking about?" he asked more calmly.  
  
"You know-" she accused him, still a little wide-eyed.  
  
"No. I don't." Sage scuffed his foot on the ground. Actually scuffed his foot on the ground. Like a little boy. "You don't make any sense!" he said, because she didn't and he was completely mystified.  
  
"Sage!" she cried in protest. She sounded angry, but of course that didn't fit in with Minako's view of a dainty little schoolgirl. So she was trying to hide it. He whirled to face the wall.  
  
"Go on, explain it then," he ordered.  
  
Minako swallowed, suddenly unsure of herself and uncertain how Sage would react to a crying girl. "Well, you know that she's deaf, Sage. And-"  
  
Sage turned suddenly back to her. "Oh, I have a thing for deaf girls now?" he retorted angrily and was surprised to hear his voice rise. "Why don't you go lose your hearing, Minako? You'll be irresistible."  
  
He saw that he'd surprised her again, yelling like that. "Sage…" she said in confusion. Then her back stiffened and she continued courageously, "You're such a compassionate person, Sagie, and with her disability-"  
  
Sage interrupted. "And how does compassion translate into…into…aaargh!" he finished in a frustrated yell. Minako flushed. Why was this explanation so hard? It had all made sense before! And now, it sounded so stupid…"You read too many romances," Sage accused.  
  
"Well, you're the type of person who'd be kind-" Minako started but Sage interrupted again, his voice had dropped back down, now quiet and frustrated.  
  
"So what is this- some kind of Cinderella story? The Prince sweeps the ragged maid off her feet? And why aren't you mad?" he demanded and his voice dropped to a confused whisper, "I'm yelling at you!" He reached out to put one hand on the wall and glowered silently at her.  
  
As his voice lowered in volume and his demeanor regained some of its usual cool, Minako lost her some of her shock. There was no need to be uncertain, no need to pay attention to Sage's unusual behavior. Just forget about it. She became suddenly happy.  
  
"Oh, Sagie," she cried. "You're being so cute!" And then of all the things she could do, she actually leaned in to kiss him. God, that girl! It was Sage's turn now to be astonished. By the time he recovered, she had very nearly done it. He ducked out of the way angrily before her lips could catch his and stalked off.  
  
Minako turned to him with big doe eyes, but he refused to look at her. "Sage…what?" she asked and her eyes glistened, completely forgetting any reservations she had about crying in front of Sage. "There IS something isn't there- with you and her-"  
  
At this, Sage whipped around, the heel of his shoe grinding into the pavement. Minako flinched. "And another thing…! I'm compassionate, am I? I'd be kind because she's deaf, is that right? How can you pretend these things –that I'm cute– when you start like a frightened rabbit the minute I actually react to any of this nonsense? You jump when I say more than two sentences together –look at yourself now– and you act like I've grown another head if I stop acting like an ice man and show any emotion besides arrogance! Don't try to tell me that any of this 'Oh, Sage, you're compassionate' is anything more than some STUPID romantic FANTASY."  
  
Minako's lacey image shredded. She was furious. In her fury, that practiced helpless feminine demeanor melted away, and she lost her uncertainty. She snapped, taking threatening step towards him. She was even aggressive. "Oh don't act so high and mighty!" she said. "You're the one being rude here. Not even listening to me! AND you avoid the question. Now listen, can I finish a single sentence, Sage? Don't inter-"  
  
"Ha!" Sage interrupted.  
  
"Oh!" Minako cried.  
  
"And you're still not making any sense."  
  
Minako gasped at his audacity. As if he were the ultimate in logic… Did he understand how confusing he was? "I'm not making any sense…errrrrr!" she cried in frustration. "Then why won't you let me kiss you?" She pointed an accusing finger in his face.  
  
That caught Sage off guard, drained his anger, and even made him a little pouty. "I never let you kiss me," he said defensively. Minako groaned again. Outside, it started to rain.  
  
"Oh, don't I know that! Especially when they are- god forbid- people around." She gestured to the deserted parking lot under the dreary gray sky. "Nobody! And you won't ask for different lab partners. Why not? Why do you prefer her over ME? What's your reason?" she demanded.  
  
Sage glared out at the falling water. "So now you can't resist me. I thought it was the redhead that was irresistible?" he snapped.  
  
"Oh, aren't you the cool one?" Minako sneered, not unfazed. She was nearly as nervous as she was mad. Sage simply did not act like this.  
  
Her mocking comment was more biting than she perhaps realized, and Sage's expression became horrified. It was a shock to be so utterly unable to control his anger. "Drop this right now!" he snapped helplessly. "It's ridiculous!"  
  
Minako yelled right back, "Is it? Prove it!"  
  
"Oh, I give up!"  
  
Minako's voice dripped with sarcasm. She flung her hands up in the air in a jerky ungraceful motion. "So just like any other guy, the amazing Mr. Date starts yelling when he's mad. As little dignity as the rest of us!" she cried, her voice shrill.  
  
"And you AREN'T yelling?"  
  
"Call me tomboy!"  
  
Sage was so angry he could not believe it. With a violent motion, he turned his back to her and scanned the parking lot. Where was Ryo? If he'd gotten here on time, this would not have happened. Ryo, hurry up! "God damn it, I don't care!" he said and turning, stormed past Minako into the school. Again her pale hand caught the door, straining against the weight of the metal.  
  
"Sage!" Minako cried angrily. He didn't even turn, striding away from her down the hall.  
  
"Go away!" he snapped and turning a corner, disappeared from sight.  
  
Minako slammed the door in helpless fury. Staring and starting to cry, she didn't know what to do. "Sage…you asshole!" she screamed inelegantly after him and threw her textbook brutally at the door. It crashed against the metal with an echoing clang and fell lifelessly to the concrete. All around her was the pitter-patter of the uncaring rain.  
  
~~~~  
  
"Because I heard about it earlier and I thought it was weird, OKAY?" Rowen glared at his so-called friend and his…his…he snarled…landlady.  
  
Kento threw up his hands defensively. "Dude, Ro! It's okay. We were just teasing."  
  
"…" Rowen said intelligently.  
  
"Gah, stop saying that!" Kento cried. He thumped Rowen on the back in a friendly manner, laughing.  
  
"Hmph," Rowen snorted. Mia hid a smile behind her hand.  
  
"Better," Kento said.  
  
~~~~  
  
"This." Sekhmet looked up at the sound of a voice addressing him. He jumped as a pair of silver earrings was shoved right in front of him, presumably for his examination. He watched them impassively. Or as impassively as he could, surrounded by countless unfamiliar people that seemed intent on trampling him beneath their designer shoes. He glared angrily at the earrings, as if they were the reason he was here.  
  
"What," he demanded, "are they?"  
  
"I would say they were jewelry. But you're the expert, not me." Kayura smiled at him. It was pleasant smile though he wished it weren't. If she were openly malicious then he could have something tangible to be angry with instead of half formed suspicions. They were half formed suspicions that were probably true, but he didn't technically know that. Kayura whirled, sending all her layers of multicolored silks fluttering. Sekhmet wondered that she did not step on one of them and fall.  
  
A store clerk was passing by. Kayura caught his sleeve with her hand and his attention with a winsome smile. "Hello, could you tell me what this is exactly?" she asked. After a second or so she added, "Please." The clerk stared at her nervously, a little afraid even, because of course Kayura spoke entirely in Japanese and he did not understand a word.  
  
Sekhmet sighed expansively and took her arm, pulling her away from the clerk. "What is…?" he managed, taking the earrings from Kayura and holding them out to the clerk. His English was exceedingly poor, but the man's relief lit up his face like a small sun. Kayura could be intimidating even in the most casual circumstances.  
  
"Ah…that! Of course, those are a beautiful piece! Hand-made in Germany, actually. And they're on sale, if you'd notice this sign right here!" the clerk gesture enthusiastically to a bright piece of cardboard covered in incomprehensible writing. Kayura began to inspect it enthusiastically.  
  
Sekhmet wondered briefly what the man had said. He gave the sign a cursory examination and then favored the babbling clerk with a skeptical stare. The clerk winced under that gaze. Sekhmet being who he was he did the evil eye very well.  
  
"Er…can't read it, can you? I mean, not that that's bad…!" The clerk flushed with embarrassment as Sekhmet continued glaring at him. "I'll just go get some help?" he suggested weakly.  
  
Sekhmet watched him go, bored. He didn't need a firm grasp of English to understand the gist of the clerk's chatter or the sign. He shoved the earrings back at Kayura. "They're something to buy. Like everything else."  
  
"Oh. Well, let's buy them then."  
  
"No."  
  
"Sekhmet…" she pleaded. Then her eyebrows pulled down into a severe and disapproving frown. "I'm going to!" she declared and she strode off after the fleeing clerk. Sekhmet gaped after her in amazement. The feeling quickly faded as he was left wondering just how she was planning to buy a piece of semi-expensive jewelry with no English language and, more importantly, no English money.  
  
He decided he'd better follow her.  
  
~~~~  
  
Cye closed the door of the empty jeep and paused, still holding the door handle. Where could Yulie be? He bent down, put a steadying hand on the grass and looked underneath the car. "Yulie?" he asked. No answer. He sighed. Of course there wasn't anybody there. Gravel crunched behind him with someone's approach.  
  
Yulie?  
  
No. Ryo was standing over him, a small brown paper bag under one arm. "Under the car?" Ryo asked curiously.  
  
Cye reddened at the question. "Well, he could be hiding," he explained. Looking away from Ryo self-consciously, he brushed a stray ladybug off the sleeve of his coat.  
  
"I dunno… You think he's playing hide and seek?" Ryo asked skeptically. Cye glared at him, causing Ryo to shift uncomfortably. "If he's in the farmer's market, I couldn't find him. And nobody's seen him," he reported, voice threaded with anxiety. "I got the kiwis…" He held up the bag.  
  
"Well, he's not here." Cye rested a hand on the car door and stood, glancing at the overcast sky.  
  
Ryo blinked. "It took you this long to look in one car?"  
  
"I think not!" Cye sniffed. "I walked around the lot, but he wouldn't answer me. So he's either not here or hiding, like I said," he added defensively.  
  
"Or maybe somebody ran him over..." Ryo murmured. A light breeze ruffled his dark hair.  
  
"Ryo!" Cye cried in protest and shivered a bit as the wind brushed past him.  
  
Ryo jumped at this exclamation, then hastily gave Cye a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry, don't worry! There'd be a lot of fuss…ambulances, sirens…You know?"  
  
"That's why I decided to check the car again."  
  
Ryo hesitated, knowing that he'd misunderstood again and not wanting to irritate his friend. "Um…In case WE ran him over?" he asked finally.  
  
Cye was appalled. "No! In case he was hiding," he explained, but his eyes flicked worriedly over the field, quickly checking for any ominously flashing lights.  
  
"Oh," Ryo said. He looked across the field turned parking lot, and his eyes rested on the strip mall across the street. "So let's check the stores then. We don't need the car…" He pointed them out for Cye's benefit and then noticed Cye's not so subtle, nervous search. Ryo gave his anxious friend a little shake. "Cye! Don't worry. Yulie's fine! Really."  
  
"Oh, yes. Of course!" Cye agreed, feeling a little silly.  
  
"Er…I think."  
  
Cye giggled.  
  
"What!" Ryo cried indignantly.  
  
"Oh, yes, he's fine…you think?" Cye repeated pleasantly. Baffled, Ryo nervously shifted the paper bag from one arm to other.  
  
"Um…yes?" he offered hesitantly.  
  
"Yes, you're right. He's completely fine. You've just misplaced him!"  
  
Ryo started as if Cye had poured ice water over his head. "ME?" he asked incredulously. His startled voice cracked.  
  
"Well, of course." Cye smiled brightly. Turning and whistling a suddenly cheery tune, he started walking away. His shoes crunched on the gravel amidst the grass.  
  
"Hey, wait!" he called. Quickly locking, the car, Ryo jerked ungracefully in to motion after Cye, noisily shifting dirt and rocks as he rushed to catch up. "That's kinda…unfair, isn't it?"  
  
Cye closed his eyes and flung his arms wide, as if he would embrace the air. The wind picked at his light jacket and hair. "Monstrously so," he agreed. Now Ryo caught the amusement in his voice and gave a small smile. Cye opened one sea-green eye to peer at him. They both laughed, and their worry lifted momentarily: of course it would be all right. Oddly refreshed, they continued walking across the rocky field towards the road.  
  
As they walked together, rain started to fall in fat droplets that splattered into glittering beads against Cye's slick coat but pierced Ryo's ragged cotton sweatshirt as easily as the cold wind that hit them at the same time. It whipped the grass back and forth and almost drowned out Ryo's self-pitying moan. Cye shook his head in amused sympathy while pulling his own coat tighter. Cold and at least half wet, the twosome trudged stubbornly towards the road as the rain hit the field with a steady, lulling rhythm and dirty puddles popped up at their feet.  
  
~~~~  
  
Rowen blinked suddenly and turned a suspicious gaze on his companions. "What was that about sailors…?" he inquired cautiously.  
  
"Eh heh…never mind." Kento grinned. Distracted by something imperceptible to the other two, Mia sat up straighter and cocked her head to the side.  
  
"Shh…" she whispered. In the silence, Rowen could hear the soft tapping of water drops on the windowpanes.  
  
"Oh…it's raining," he said. Mia stood and turned off the television. Ejecting the tape from the VCR she placed it softly next to the TV. Kento stood also and yawned, stretching his arms towards the ceiling. With a smile, Mia smacked his ample stomach where it peeped out from under his shirt. The slap of skin against skin made Rowen wince in sympathy.  
  
"Oof! Mia, not fair," Kento cried. He pulled his arms down quickly to warp around his middle protectively. Mia chuckled at him. Waving a hand at them to follow her, she wandered around the couch towards the kitchen.  
  
"Come on, come on. I'll make sandwiches. I missed lunch anyway." The door between the living room and the kitchen swung open as Mia walked through. Kento dodged in behind her before it closed, still rubbing his sore stomach and his offended dignity. The door, swinging closed behind him, nearly slammed an unsuspecting Rowen in the face.  
  
"Gah," he said intelligently and pushed the door open again to follow them in. Mia was opening cabinets and drawers, pulling out food and plates. Kento sat at the table with an air of offended, if not comic, dignity. He looked up at Rowen with a little apologetic grin.  
  
"Thing I don't understand is why was it just girls?" Mia asked, busy with a slice of bread and a jar of mustard. Rowen scratched the back of his head absently and shrugged.  
  
"Oh, I didn't tape that part…there's a group of boys someplace up north."  
  
"Uh, does it have a…theme?" Kento wondered, a little amused and a little disgusted. Rowen sat down across from him and watched Mia making the sandwiches.  
  
"I don't know. That was kinda ridiculous wasn't it?" he agreed. "Hey, Mia, pickles?"  
  
"I was thinking less ridiculous and more a little off color," Mia said. She pulled a jar out of the fridge. Kento grabbed two pickles for himself and bit into the first with an enthusiastic crunch.  
  
Rowen shrugged. "Well, that's what makes good comedy."  
  
Mia put down the bread and the lunchmeat to throw a suspicious glance his way. "You're one of those people who liked Ren and Stimpy, aren't you?"  
  
"It was a joke?"  
  
Mia shook her head in mock disappointment. "All of you are so easy to tease. Silly boys."  
  
Kento cut in with an indignant squawk, "Hey, Ren and Stimpy rocked!" Rowen fixed him with his patented, disdainful over-the-sunglasses glare. Mia continued making sandwiches though a smile twitched at the corners of her lips.  
  
Rowen looked up at the ceiling. "Hey, the rain's picking up. Listen to it." It was true. The stormy sky was almost dark enough to be night, and there was an audible drumming sound of large raindrops hitting the roof. At the window, water dribbled down the glass hiding the outside world behind a wet, watery blur. Rowen had a sudden thought.  
  
"Hey, aren't the other guys supposed to be back by now? Where're Cye and Ryo?" he asked.  
  
"And where's Sage?" Mia added. The phone rang and Kento answered it. After a few quick words and some anxious chattering on the other end, he looked up and fixed his friends with his curious gaze.  
  
"No, dude. Where's Yulie? His parents are on the phone. They want to know why he isn't home yet…"  
  
  
  
End Chapter 3.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~  
  
You've read this note twice, no need to make it thrice, but I'll ask you again:  
  
Is this thing worth it?  
  
  
  
Melee  
  
  
  
Look, one new review! Say "oooh!" everyone (you know, like the little green aliens in Toy Story).  
  
Maryd: Scary. You were, like, paying attention when you read this, dude. I'm glad you liked Sekhmet and Kayura; I enjoyed writing it.  
  
All these random hints that get dropped…like Kento and Kayura in a mall, Sage's inner romantic attacking helpless girls, Cye's rotten grapes, a drunken Sekhmet in the south of France…are just that: random. I don't why they're there and if I had a sense of humor I could conceivably write a short about them, but I don't. So I hope you enjoy them anyway… 


	4. Pretty Blue Bird

Monkey see, Monkey do  
  
Part I: The Long Trip Home  
  
~~~~  
  
Mimi's vacation continues… All thanks may be in the form of monetary donations and/or Ryo plushes. Never met him, but a picture is worth a thousand words…  
  
And now for a short romantic interlude!  
  
~~~~  
  
CHAPTER 4: Pretty Blue Bird  
  
~~~~  
  
"No, I'm sorry. They aren't here. I thought he wasn't supposed to be back until seven? Oh, okay. Yeah. You want Cye's cell phone? You've already got the number—great. Yeah, we'll call. Bye, Mrs. Yamano." Kento hung up the phone behind him and turned around in his seat to face his two silent friends.  
  
"Yulie's not back?" Mia asked, biting her lip in worry.  
  
"Aw, don't worry. Yulie isn't supposed to be back for an hour. They're home early. Just want to know where is," said Kento. Mia smiled in relief.  
  
"You had me worried for a second!" She turned back to the counter, and putting a finished sandwich aside, she started on another. Rowen, however, looked more thoughtful than relieved.  
  
"Yes, but weren't they all supposed to be back here by now anyway?" he said, standing to look out the kitchen's window into the storm-darkened sky and heavy rain. "It's a pretty bad storm. You don't think something happened? Like with the car?" Mia looked up at his words, joining his thoughtful gaze into the storm. Her face again became worried.  
  
"I hope not. You don't think anything did?" she asked anxiously.  
  
Kento waved her troubles away, saying easily, "Hey, hey. What could go wrong?" Instantly, a deafening crash sounded as lighting flashed across the lake. The evening for an instant was as bright as noon on a summer day. The lights flickered for a few seconds and then went out completely. The three of them waited, blinking spots out of their eyes, but the lights did not come back on.  
  
"Wow," was Kento's awed whisper into the gloom, "wonder if that was my fault?"  
  
~~~~  
  
In the pet shop, Yulie watched the goldfish swim lazily back and forth in the tank. The fish was larger than any goldfish he'd ever seen, with long tissue paper fins and bulbous eyes that made it look like an alien out of a bad sci-fi movie. Chou was elsewhere trying to scare the rabbits in the window, but as soon as Yulie had wandered back into this dark corner lit only by the bluish lights of the tanks, he had been mesmerized the extraterrestrial fish.  
  
He looked up as the bell on the door sounded, signaling a new arrival. Peeking through the gaps between the tanks he could see the some of the back of Chou's head at the front of the small store and the door from which a sopping wet Ryo had just entered.  
  
Chou looked up as someone tapped him on the shoulder. "You're Chou, right?" Ryo asked. Chou stared at him. "Have you seen--" Chou yelped and bolted to the back of the store. As he tore around the corner where Yulie was concealed behind the aquariums, he began tugging frantically on Yulie's arm.  
  
"Hey, he found us! Let's go!" Chou urged. Yulie watched him, uncomprehending, as Ryo turned the corner. Turning away from Chou, Yulie smiled and waved.  
  
"Ryo! Ryo!" he cried, running up to his older friend and latching on to his arm. "Come look at this really cool fish!"  
  
Ryo blinked. Chou just gaped.  
  
"Um…okay?" Ryo said. He bent down obediently to peer into the goldfish's tank. "It's got bug eyes," he deadpanned.  
  
"Ryo!" Yulie protested. "It's cool! Look at the tail!" He pointed enthusiastically. The fish swam serenely in the tank, ignoring them.  
  
"Yeah, cool. Like we're the evil, brain-sucking bug fish from outer space. Rarr!" Ryo reached out and started tickling Yulie. The younger boy squealed happily. Ryo swung Yulie up over his shoulder and stood. "Listen, bud. We've gotta go find Cye now, k? Say 'goodbye, Chou'."  
  
"G-goodbye, Ch-chou!" Yulie giggled. And with that, they left the store to the chime of bell, reentering the storm fearlessly. Problem solved. Chou remained behind, dumbfounded by his ally's abrupt defection.  
  
~~~~  
  
In the powerless house, Mia, Rowen and Kento jumped as the phone suddenly rang. Both Kento and Rowen leapt for it. After a quick scramble in the dark, Kento elbowed Rowen in the ribs and snatched up the handset with a breathless "Hello!"  
  
Grumbling, Rowen watched resentfully from the kitchen floor. Kento ignored him, startled by the voice at the other end of the line. "Sage, hey! We were just wondering about y--" he was cut off as Mia grabbed the phone away from him.  
  
"Sage, I'm so relieved," Mia said. "Where are you? Tell Ryo- What? Oh. Mm- hmm." Sage spoke on the other end, explaining something. Rowen could hear the hum of his voice through the phone as Mia murmured an understanding "yes" or "mm" at appropriate pauses. Finally, she turned to them pulling the phone away from her mouth.  
  
"He's at the school," she said. "Ryo is already twenty minutes late, and Sage hasn't heard from him."  
  
Kento leaned back in his chair. "Damn, don't know where he'd be," he said thoughtfully.  
  
"Neither do I," Rowen said. Fumbling around with his hand, he found the counter and pulled himself up. "I'm going to find a flashlight. Should we maybe call Cye?" Blindly, he began to search through the cabinets.  
  
"Oh, of course. I should have remembered that." Speaking into the phone, she said, "Sage? We are going to call Cye, ok? Yes, he's with Ryo. Either they'll pick you up or we will, ok? Bye."  
  
Mia hung up on Sage and dialed Cye's cell phone. After several rings, a recording came on explaining that the cellular customer she was trying to call was unavailable and what's more, had not yet set up his voice mailbox. She tried again twice more with the same results and began to feel a little worried.  
  
Reluctantly, she hung up the phone. At the table, she could just make out Kento watching her curiously in the dark. With the storm outside, even the moonlight gave barely any light. Rowen was no longer in kitchen as his search for illumination had taken him elsewhere. Mia, who was fast becoming more than casually worried about Yulie and the two missing Ronins, was struck with the sudden desire to call Rowen immediately back into the kitchen so that she would know for certain that he was safe and whole.  
  
"So?" Kento prompted. His voice shocked her out of her contemplation, making her feel suddenly embarrassed by her nervousness.  
  
"There's no answer," she explained.  
  
"Oh." There was a pause as each of them tried to decide how to best suggest that they go looking for their missing friends without sounding silly or paranoid to other.  
  
Really, there isn't be anything to worry about, but just in case…  
  
"Just to be safe--" Kento started as Mia said, "I know they're fine, but--" They both coughed sheepishly. Mia motioned for Kento to continue.  
  
He clasped his hands behind his head and studied the ceiling, trying to sound nonchalant. "Well, this is a pretty bad storm, and we can't reach them, so I was just thinking -- now I know they're fine and probably nothing's wrong but--"  
  
"You were thinking what?" Mia encouraged eagerly.  
  
"--that somebody ought to look for them," he finished hastily. "You know, to check, just in case--"  
  
"Good idea!" Mia cried, almost before he'd finished.  
  
An awkward silence settled over them until at some unseen signal they both dashed towards the front door.  
  
As they passed the base of the stairs, a sudden bright light blinded them. "Hey, where are you guys going?" Rowen asked from behind his flashlight.  
  
"Rowen, get that thing out of my eyes!" Kento swung an arm out, trying to knock the flashlight away. Rowen pulled his arm away, clicking it off.  
  
"Hey, my flashlight. I found it," he whined.  
  
"We decided to check up on Ryo and Cye," Mia said, trying to blink the spots out of her eyes. "Something may have happened to the car and we can't reach them."  
  
"Man, it's so frigging dark in here, how are you going to find the car?" Rowen grumbled, clutching his flashlight protectively.  
  
"Rowen, you're still wearing your sunglasses."  
  
"Oh, yeah…"  
  
"ANYWAY," Kento interrupted, "I'm going to take my van to look for them and you two are staying here."  
  
"We are?" Mia demanded. " I'm going with you!"  
  
"Nope. You've still got your grandfather's old car in the garage. If somebody calls, someone who can drive should still be here."  
  
Mia crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine," she said. "You may go."  
  
Kento bowed elegantly. "Why thank you, lady."  
  
~~~~  
  
Cale looked up from his work as a small round ball bounced by him along the sidewalk. It was a beautiful day, and he'd managed to find some clean, modern slacks so that he could brave the outside world free from the curious gaze of passerby, but he hadn't been able to find an alternative to the bright eyesore that was the Grateful Dead t-shirt.  
  
Two barefoot children ran past after the ball, followed more sedately by two adults he took to be their parents. He watched calmly, heartened by the image of happy family life, a life that he had not been able to have, but at least he had not been able to destroy it either.  
  
Feeling better than he had in days, he again took up his pencil and returned to filling out the forms in his lap in barely passable written English. Over the trials of these past few months since he'd left the dynasty (minor trials like finding an apartment in the United States without money or identification or surviving on Twinkies because one didn't know how to use modern kitchen appliances), Cale had begun to doubt the wisdom of this idea.  
  
Maybe he really ought to have stayed in the Dynasty. No matter how unbearable the atmosphere has become, at least he knew what he was doing there. As Sekhmet had reminded him, only a fool wouldn't watch his step around the Demon of Darkness, which, he mused as he watched the children playing, was the root of the problem right there.  
  
"Cale, pay attention, would you?"  
  
Cale looked up in mild confusion at the tall man in black standing over him. "Dais?" he ventured, squinting.  
  
The other man sighed. "Yes, Cale. I have some things for you. If I give them to you now will you lose them?" he asked in a patronizing tone that was not lost on Cale. Dais held out a sheaf of papers towards the -- relatively-- younger man. Cale snatched them away, vaguely irritated.  
  
"No," he muttered, "I won't lose them." Inside the sheaf of papers was a passport, a birth certificate, a visa, and a bank account, along with other means of identification or proof that he was 34, born in Tokyo and legally in the U.S. seeking to attend school at Washington University in St. Louis. Not really familiar with the meaning of any of the papers, he closed the folder, satisfied that Dais had fulfilled his request.  
  
"Cale…" Dais began, hesitant in a way that Dais was not usually hesitant. Almost considerate. "Do you want your name?"  
  
Cale looked through they papers again. They all read "Cale Hinomoto", not Kujuurou Sasaki. "No…no, I don't," he said.  
  
Dais looked away, uncharacteristically embarrassed by the personal issue. He wasn't usually embarrassed by anything. Strangely, he was also fiddling with a thin silver chain around his neck, most of which was hidden beneath his black shirt. Noticing Cale's questioning gaze, Dais stopped. "It's something I lost a long time ago. I've recently found it again," he explained. Also unusual since Dais wasn't one to give out free information.  
  
"Oh, and Cale?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Nice shirt."  
  
"Roll over and die, Dais," Cale suggested.  
  
With a smirk, Dais left. Chewing irritably on the pencil eraser, Cale allowed himself a moment of resentment. Hell, he thought in annoyance, this just isn't fair. I bet Halo isn't having an identity crisis. I bet he's having the time of his life.  
  
~~~~  
  
At that moment, Sage probably would not have agreed. He was sitting forlornly in the school gymnasium on the highest bench of the bleachers and wishing he could hear the rain from inside the thick, windowless walls. It was a sound he'd always found soothing (even when Ryo was complaining loudly about how he hated getting wet), and he desperately wanted to hear a soothing sound now. He had only the barest understanding of why he had gotten so angry with Minako, and the fact was bothering him such that he could not think of anything else.  
  
After he'd fled so quickly, he'd found himself with no real place to go. He was supposed to be waiting for Ryo to pick him up in front of the school, but with Minako there he certainly was not going back now. So he'd called Mia's house, discovered that Ryo was who-knows-where, and then continued wandering aimlessly throughout the school.  
  
His wandering had ended here, in the gym. He thought that he might have had some half formed reason for coming, perhaps he would practice his kendo in preparation for the upcoming tryouts for the school team, but now that he was here he could not force himself to concentrate.  
  
Why had he been so furious? He thought he knew that answer a little, obviously Minako had something to do with it, but why had he been in such a mood that he could get that furious?  
  
The year after Talpa's fall, the triumphant, amazing, heroic, yes-we-beat- the-bad-guys Ronin Warriors had all been so giddy with victory and with their new friends, even as they each began moving away back to their homes, that Sage honestly had not noticed that the battle might have changed him.  
  
That school year he'd been away from his friends and missed them badly, but even Sage, who considered himself a truly perceptive individual, could not see the stark contrasts between his life before Talpa and his life after without the two worlds directly next to each other for comparison.  
  
Over the summer, all of them --including Mia-- had independently of each other but almost in unison begun to make plans to see that they did spend another year apart. Ryo and Cye had moved in with Mia, and after Cye had convinced his mother that Mia actually ran a sort of bed and breakfast, the warrior of torrent even paid rent. Rowen and Kento both transferred from the school they attended, and Rowen now stayed at Mia's enough to almost qualify as a tenant too.  
  
So beginning nearly a month ago, all of the people Sage loved best in the world had joined him as third year students at Ha'na High.  
  
Sitting on the bleachers in the deserted gym, Sage raked his hands through his hair uneasily. They'd all come to join him at his high school. He suspected somehow that the urge to come together had originated in him, that they'd all known somehow that he'd needed them.  
  
He'd brought them here, and it was a deep and biting guilt that for some reason the fulfillment of his wish was turning into a complete and utter hell on earth.  
  
Why couldn't life be considerate of other people this once and just go back to the way it had been before…  
  
~~~~  
  
The door closed behind Kento. With her hands on her hips, Mia turned towards Rowen. The expression on her face was still disapproving. "Alright, so what are we going to do then?" she asked.  
  
They were both pleasantly surprised when the lights flickered on in response. Rowen shrugged. "I guess Kento really is bad luck," he said. He was still wearing his sunglasses. Mia couldn't help but laugh.  
  
As she laughed, Rowen sidled up to her with a mysterious look on his face. In confusion she watched him slowly take her hand in his and slip his other arm around her waist. Then, as if that weren't unsettling enough, he began to lead her in a slow, romantic waltz across the living room. She stared at him, too embarrassed to look him in the eye but too shocked not too. His gray-blue eyes stared back, unabashed. The dark sunglasses were nowhere to be seen.  
  
"Wuh-what are you doing?" she stuttered nervously. He favored her with a small secretive smile.  
  
Mystified and completely helpless in his arms, Mia followed his lead as they traveled effortlessly across the room, turning in the slow movements of the waltz. She had not known that Rowen could dance.  
  
Dazedly she saw that they had drifted towards the corner and the sound system her grandfather had bought before he died. Releasing her hand gently but keeping his arm securely around her waist, Rowen quietly slipped a disk into the player. He turned back to her with that secret smile tugging at the edges of his lips. Mia's thoughts raced as she tried desperately to understand what was going on…  
  
Her thoughts came to a sudden, jerking halt as her brain was boldly ripped out of her skull by the sound of Led Zeppelin playing at the highest volume on the four gigantic speakers of her grandfather's surround sound. It was the most horrible assortment of noise she had ever heard.  
  
The romantic atmosphere shattered. Mia clapped both her hand over her ears in pain, effectively separating them.  
  
"We," Rowen informed her with a toothy grin, "are going to PARTAAAAAAAAAAY!" As he spoke, he punched his fist into the air triumphantly.  
  
He was shocked when Mia repeated the gesture enthusiastically, slugging him in the arm as hard as she could.  
  
~~~~  
  
Kento closed the door harder than he meant to, but the sound was lost in the storm. With a shiver he pulled his hood up as he fumbled with his other hand for the car keys in his pocket. Pausing once to get up his nerve, he dashed out from under the overhang into the rain. Rain pounded into him as he ran towards the van at the edge of Mia's driveway, the water finding someway to get through the raincoat and soak him to the skin.  
  
Movement in a small tree at the edge of the woods near the van startled him as he turned the key in the lock. Less than three feet away, a diminutive songbird was perched on a branch about waist height watching him curiously. Kento shaded his eyes from the rain and crouched down to admire the deep blue of its feathers. His sneakers made an odd squelching noise in the mud.  
  
Rain dripped from the branches onto the little bird and onto Kento's hood where he squatted in fascination. Abruptly, a gust of wind blew the icy rain into his face causing him to jump to his feet with a surprised yelp and jerk open the car door. The fierce wind blew water in the open door as got in the van quickly. The door slammed shut behind him.  
  
"Silly bird," he muttered, as he pulled out of the driveway. "Don't you know when to come in out of the rain?"  
  
  
  
End Chapter 4.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~  
  
You've read this note already, but I'll ask you again:  
  
Is this thing worth it?  
  
  
  
Melee  
  
  
  
  
  
P.S. please ignore the fact that I think that the legal driving age is 18 in Japan and that even Cye, as the oldest, would not be able to drive junior year of high school. Also ignore the fact that if this is really taking place two years after Talpa it really should be happening sometime in the late eighties and I have certain _doubts_ about the cellular technology back then…Well, Cye has a cell phone, anyway. Yeah. I'm done now.  
  
Also, does everyone HATE Minako? I don't mean because she's a nasty person, but because she's original. Can you stand reading about her even when she's obviously just a supporting character? Are the little note things with Mimi at the beginning really, really obnoxious?  
  
  
  
On a completely irrelevant note:  
  
Everyone say hello Lisa!  
  
Everyone: Hello, Lisa!  
  
Panic out. 


	5. Rocket to the Moon

(insert disclaimer here)

Monkey see, Monkey do

Part I: The Long Trip Home

~~~~

Oh my god, who does Hana think she is? She knows I'm working on this. She _knows_ I have a schedule to keep. Oh sure, I got locked in the closet on ACCIDENT. 

Sheah. Right.

Oh, and that "romantic interlude"? Don't get mad at ME for false advertising. That's the way it happened! I'm not altering it to suit your disgusting, vulgar tastes. So, you know what, Hana? You want something more "juicy"?

Bite me!

~~~~

CHAPTER 5: Rocket to the Moon

~~~~

"Yulie! Ryo, put him down," Cye cried, exasperated. Ryo turned around and smiled. Bending over, he let Yulie slide off his shoulder. Rain pounded against the pavement, making even Cye's impatient shout seem oddly shushed.

They stood under the overhang that jutted out over the entrances of the stores, though they were still sprayed by occasional wind-blown rain. Cye hurried towards Ryo and Yulie, having spotted them as they exited the pet store. 

"Yulie, what _were_ you thinking?" He admonished as he approached. Embarrassed, Yulie scuffed his foot on the concrete sidewalk and half hid behind Ryo, but Cye was having none of it. He stepped around Ryo, quashing Yulie's attempt to hide. "Well?" he demanded primly.

"Um…wanted ta go with Chou," Yulie mumbled, barely audible over the storm. 

"Oh, did you? What about us?"

"Ch-chou said--" Yulie was trying to whisper, to sound small, cute, but he found himself having to raise his voice to be heard.

"I bet he did!" Cye "hmph"-ed dramatically. "I think we are going to go home _now_."

"Aw, come on, Cye…" Ryo started. Cye slowly turned towards Ryo.

"Yes, Ryo?" he asked very pleasantly. Ryo gulped.

"Well, I mean, he's fine and we found him really quick…so we don't have to be all mad?" he guessed. The storm nearly drowned out his hesitant speech.

Cye watched him silently for a few moments in a manner that Ryo found a little intimidating.

"You had a rather -- unstructured -- childhood, Ryo," Cye declared finally and strode into the storm. 

"What?"

"Um…I think he's in kind of bad mood, Ryo?" Yulie offered. With a shrug, Ryo sat on the edge of the curb, sticking his feet out into the parking lot. Rain splattered his sneakers and jeans.

"Yeah, but he's right, you know? You can't just do that. If you want to go somewhere--fine, but just tell us?" Ryo pleaded. 

"Well, that was kinda the point…" Yulie explained. 

"Huh?"

"You know…so…um…" Yulie blushed. "So you wouldn't know where I was."

"Oh," Ryo said. Yulie felt suddenly guilty. Shyly, almost stealthily, he snuck up behind Ryo's right shoulder. 

"Um…" he began and jumped suddenly as lighting flashed across the sky with a thunderous crash. Ryo looked up. 

"Why'd you want to do that?" he asked Yulie.

"Chou--"

"You seem to say that a lot. What's he got to do with anything, Yulie?" Startled, Yulie saw that Cye had rejoined them and was leaning against one of the brick pillars that held up the overhang. "Yes?" Cye prompted.

"M'sorry," Yulie whimpered and, to his embarrassment, started to cry. 

"There's no need for that. Listen, Yulie," Cye said kindly, "I'm sorry if I was a bit snappy, but if you want to come with us you have to listen to us. Just running off like that is dangerous. We didn't know where you were and were worried, okay?" He shot a glance at Ryo. "Right?"

"Cye was totally freaked," Ryo agreed. 

Cye smiled wanly. "Well, Ryo wasn't worried at all, I suppose. He hoped you'd been run over and was already planning your funeral, in fact!"

Yulie stopped in mid-sniffle. "Wh-what?"

"I did not," Ryo denied. With a reassuring grin, he reached out and lifted the distressed younger boy onto his shoulders. Yulie managed a small smile through tears. "Cye's just evil. Come on let's go!"

All together again and mildly content, they began walking back to Mia's jeep.

~~~~

Sage wasn't waiting in front of the school. It was completely deserted, as it should have been on a Saturday evening. Kento slowed the van to stop by the curb and squinted through the rain-splattered glass for a glimpse of his absent friend.  Uncertain, the van crept forward past the front exits and windows, but still with no success. 

At the far right of the building there was a diminutive figure huddled against the wall. A miserable girl in a damp school uniform, the required skirt looking pitifully inadequate against the cold and rain. Kento stopped in front of her. He rolled the window and called out into the rain.

"Hey! Uh…no, wait--" When she didn't respond it occurred to him that to talk to him she'd have to get up and come into the storm. Feeling like an ass, he hurried to roll up the window before the inside of the car became too wet, and fumbled the door open. The door finally closed behind him, and he walked uncertainly towards her, realizing too late as he passed between the shelter of the car and that of the overhang, that he'd forgotten to put up his hood.

She looked up lazily as she heard him approach, dripping. Her eyes widened slightly and she abruptly sat up straighter. Perhaps she'd thought he was someone else. Kento had thought she looked miserable and wretched when he'd seen her from the car, but now she looked confident and sure as she watched him with a superior detachment.  She ran a hand through her black hair and it suddenly didn't look nearly so mussed as it had. Kento stopped, mildly shocked by the transformation.

"Hello?" she inquired with minimal politeness.   He coughed sheepishly, getting up his nerve again. 

"Yeah…er…I'm looking for a friend of mine. Have you--" he managed. Her eyes were studying his face, and as if she'd just now recognized him, her eyes narrowed. He didn't have the faintest idea who she was.

"Sage got picked up," she snapped. Her poise wasn't as sure or confident as it had been a few moments before when she'd pulled herself together. Kento blinked.

"Uh…did he? Did you see by who? Were they--" She waved a hand and shut him up.

"No. Actually, yes. He got picked up by that one, the…" Her eyes searched the parking lot for an answer, "the soccer player. You know?" she said finally.

"Ryo," Kento agreed with some relief. "That's good. Thanks." He threw her a final wave and grin and jogged back to the van, pulling his hood up as he ran. 

The girl watched him go, her body slumping back into dejection.  "Yeah. Just freakin' great," she snarled angrily.

The van was already gone.

Kento pulled around the side and hopped out again. There was still one thing he had to do. Pulling open the side door, relieved it was unlocked, he dodged a janitor's cart in the middle of the hall, and made a grab for the pay phone by the entrance. He shoved in a few coins and dialed Mia's number.

Mia's worried voice answered on the first ring. He reassured her with a laugh, embarrassed for both his own worry and hers.

"Dude, he got picked up," he told her in response to her nervous questioning. "Yeah, I guess they're fine. No worries. Yeah, bye."  

But when he dialed the second number, Cye's cell phone still didn't answer. Shaking off a sudden chill, he pushed open the door and walked back into the rain.

~~~~

Rowen held out the car keys towards Mia, face the picture of innocence. "Mia, please?" he asked sincerely, watching her with an earnest expression.  

Until Mia favored him with an icy glare, and his angelic expression broke into a puppyish whimper. Unimpressed, Mia turned and left the poor, sincerely pleading Ronin of Strata standing desolately by the couch. Desperately, he pursued her and rushing past her, dropped to his knees in front of her still clutching the keys. 

"Pretty, pretty pleeeeeez?" he begged. "It'll be awesome! Honest." He raised the keys in supplication. 

"Rowen, are you _capable_ of acting seriously?" Mia demanded archly.

"No. Of course not," he replied easily, but even so rose from the floor, briefly dusting off his jeans. He cleared his throat and met her eyes in what was --finally-- a satisfactorily serious manner. 

"_Alright_," he said. "You're beyond bonkers over this storm-- Kento's called, given everybody a clean bill of health. Sage got picked up, right? But you're still bonkers. So lets do something, yeah?"

An emotionally-scarred-after-having-her-heart-toyed-with Mia sniffed miserably. "Bonkers?"

"Well, yeah. Worried." 

"I --" she started. Rowen wasn't paying attention. He reached into his pocket and fished out the pair of black sunglasses. He slipped them on and gave a cocky grin.

"So. We's going?" and he tossed her the keys.

~~~~

In the few minutes Sekhmet had had to deal with her, the aging woman at the register proved herself not only to be of an extremely poor temperament but also to possess a basic inflexibility when confronted with anything other than the norm. It haunted him with visions of the destruction his venom armor could wreak on her little counter in the sea of clothing racks. If only he let it. 

If only.  

It was too much to bear. Sekhmet could not stand crowds of people. The presence of the hundreds of unknown shoppers wandering continuously in and out sent a perpetual shiver down his spine. He could not stand having people near him whom he had not expressly permitted to be there. He could ­_not_ handle this.

And Kayura was determined to play psychiatrist here and now. She was angry with him and his refusal to deal with his horrible guilt. She was angry that he would drag her down with him into his depression. And she was angry that she obviously couldn't do anything about it, especially after her complete and utter failures with both Cale and Dais. 

Kayura was determined to force his hand. To force his hand by unsettling him so badly, by overturning his self-control so thoroughly that he could no longer continue the status quo. Maybe he needed it. Maybe he really ought to learn to let go of those disastrous years -- disastrous centuries. Forget the blame. Maybe.

But he could not -- could not -- do it like this. It was closing in on him. He'd been thrown in to an impossibly small room that was closing in like the death and irrevocable judgment that waited inevitably in his future…

Behind him, dozens, hundreds, thousands of feet clacked, slammed, thundered on the false marble floors, stampeding towards him.

The overwhelming stenches and mirages of color and clothes and hats and shoes and dishes and microwaves and the twenty percent off all-purpose new and improved fry pan from Paris surrounded him.

Someone stepped on his heel and forgot to apologize.  

The woman behind the counter chattered like an angry, neurotic squirrel as she snatched up his only English money, two pounds and a 50 pence coin. 

He still did not have half the cost of those horrible earrings.

Kayura stood by his side and smiled beatifically up at him when he looked at her.

Pushed beyond his limits, pushed so far that it forced him to act, Sekhmet's hand closed around Kayura's wrist like a vise as he spun on his heel and led the both of them out of the store for good.

~~~~

"Oh, well this is lovely," Cye said, surveying the damage. Rain dripped miserably onto his face. He tightened the hood of his raincoat.

"That isn't what I'd call it…" Ryo ventured next to Cye. Both he and his young hanger-on were soaked to the skin. Yulie hiccupped wretchedly.

"Sarcasm is lost on you, Ryo," Cye snapped. Ryo turned to him, exasperated. Yulie, on his shoulders, turned with him, not paying attention to anything but his grip on Ryo's hair. 

"You're like extra sweet today, you know?" Ryo said. Cye actually blushed.

 "Sorry," he said. Ryo paused uncertainly.

"Oh… uh…don't worry. It's cool," he said, freeing one hand from Yulie's leg and waving the problem away. Cye cleared his throat guiltily.

"So…are we walking?" he changed the subject.

"Yeah…"

"Walking?" Yulie sniffled from Ryo's shoulders. "Do we have to?"

"Hey, you've got a _ride_!" Ryo laughed. Yulie made a face that could have been a smile and visibly tried to cheer himself up in front of two of the people he most admired.

"Yeah. A really lame, slow ride," he managed to joke.

Somehow happy again, they turned and walked back the way they had come, leaving behind Mia's little red jeep and the miniature lake that had sprung up around it drowning the wheels and much of the front bumper as the front sank into softer mud. Turning their backs on misfortune, the shipwrecked trio went in search of greener, dryer pastures and maybe a pay phone would be nice too.

~~~~

Impatiently, Sage pushed his body up off the bleacher. He thumped down the bleacher steps ungracefully and stood for second at the bottom, staring at the empty gym. An inexplicable irritation welled up in him. He hurried out, not even turning as the door slammed shut behind him. 

The school was deserted. He'd been there to help Minako with an English project, but they hadn't gotten anything done. All she'd wanted to do apparently was fight with him for ridiculous and childish reasons. 

He took a deep breath.

When they'd started the library had actually been reasonably full for a weekend. One of the advanced science classes had already handed out a project and several students were researching. There'd been practices for several sports in the gym. 

But now the school was deserted. It was eerie. 

 Feeling stupid for getting creeped out by his own high school, Sage covered the emotion by striding forcefully down the hallway towards the exit. He didn't even slow down at the next door, just held his hand out, arm locked, and let it slam into the door with all the force of his angry walk. The door swung frantically away from him. 

At the next intersection he took a left and was shocked abruptly out of his daze to see Kento at the exit, pushing down the handle of the door and halfway out in the rain. 

Sage called out in surprise.

Kento turned in equal surprise. "Dude, I thought you got picked up!" he called down the hall. Something flashed across his face before he settled into happiness at meeting his friend.

Sage stopped and frowned. For a second, Kento hadn't seemed happy to see him. He'd seemed scared, but scared of what? 

~~~~

"Ooh, and then left here!" Rowen gushed. Obediently and with no small irritation, Mia turned her grandfather's car onto the indicated road. The storm threw down the rain so fiercely that even the quickly moving windshield wipers barely helped.

They'd been doing this for twenty minutes. Obviously, Rowen had had someplace quite specific in mind when he'd suggested they do "something", but he refused to tell her! It was almost enough to make her forget to feel sorry for herself. 

"And then a right…" The old car turned onto another unfamiliar road lined with closed shops and restaurants. The pouring rain obscured even the closest storefronts, yet it barely seemed to hamper Rowen's vision. 

"Here! HERE! Turn in here!" He cried and turned to smile proudly at her. "Tadaaaaaaa! Are you ready to par-TAY?" he whooped. Curiously, Mia shifted the car into park and leaned over the steering wheel. Peering through the dark rain, she just could make out the sign over the entrance, but that was ridiculous. It was a…?

"Rowen," she said skeptically, "that's an IHOP."

End Chapter 5.

~~~~

Same deal. 

Lacking an ability to judge my own work, I'm asking you for your opinion; do ­_you_ think this thing is worth continuing? 

  
Melee 

P.S. I went on the uber (insert umlaut) road trip and then to D.C. for two weeks. Sorry for delay. Getting close to school time. Do not know if I will get to even start Chapter six for a month or two. Hope you can wait. Thanks.

Oh, more reviews! Oh, returning readers! Oh, oh, oh!

Thank you for giving Minako and Mimi a clean bill of health. Minako will continue to play a supporting role (although I think she only appears once more), and as Mimi said herself she's the intro girl and there's no promotion in sight.

BrokenSymmetry: Oh good. I love Cale, too. About his age, wouldn't he be 21? Well, maybe he _looks_ 21, but he's over 400, right? As such, when he decides to play mortal, his age is somewhat arbitrary. Cale didn't want to be so young that people would disregard him, but his young appearance means he can't be _too_ old. Originally he wanted to be 56 so he could act like an old geezer if he wanted to, but Dais pointed out that no one would believe it, so Cale moved it down to 34. 

**maryd**:Hello again. You're review is so _specific_! (I love it!) Cale definitely should have started small, but I think if I ever get around to explaining these mysterious hints I keep dropping (I'm so clumsy) it will make more sense. And here's your Kayura and Sekhmet newsflash, even if it was brief…

**dawning_light_2000**: Thanks. I'm glad it seems to be getting better as it goes along!

**Kmoney**: Oh goodie, I do manage to be totally random. I was hoping so. 

**Tategami**: In this case, that randomness appears to be confusing for some; I will have to keep that in mind.

**Krystal**: Yes, that's right. Lets just ignore my glaring errors. I LIKE that. Or as my friend and I prefer: they're not mistakes, they're "metaphors".


	6. Jolly Old Uncle Chris

(insert disclaimer here)

Monkey see, Monkey do

Part I: The Long Trip Home

~~~~

Oh dear. This chapter still doesn't make any sense to me at all.

~~~~

CHAPTER 6: Jolly Old Uncle Chris

~~~~

The hot air outside hit Sekhmet hard as he slammed past the heavy glass doors, towing Kayura behind him. She bumped lightly into him as he stopped just outside of the doors, frozen in the sun. Patiently, she moved to his side, watching and waiting. They were both silent.

Standing there, worked up, in the middle of a sidewalk no less cramped than the store he'd just so decisively left, Sekhmet found himself at a loss of what to do. Harrods wasn't an anomaly in the middle of a peaceful, warlord friendly London. Dashing out of the store didn't get him the tranquil countryside he wanted, and not only that, his recent discomfort didn't seem nearly so crippling out here in the open air. Not to mention that he'd been saving up his adrenaline for the imagined battle Kayura was surely going to give him for the wrench he'd thrown in her plans. 

Instead he was feeling silly and stupid for embarrassing himself like that, and Kayura wasn't giving him the good, stress-relieving, shouting match he wanted. She was not interrogating him in the least about their sudden departure, merely waiting quietly. As she watched him patiently, Sehkmet felt himself wishing she had asked him about it. He wasn't sure of the answers either.

Then, in an atypical manner, Sekhmet decided he didn't care. This was stupid, he was dancing to Kayura's tune for the righteous indignation it offered, and it – just – wasn't – worth – it.

They would go someone place else. They would eat. And maybe, just maybe, he'd be relaxed enough to stand talking to her. 

Even as he moved to pull Kayura farther away, she stopped him, giving his hand a quick, suspiciously reassuring squeeze. He turned to her defensively and unwilling to forfeit his brief advantage. He was not going to be played with again.

But Kayura only smiled shyly. She removed something from the sleeves – a small rectangle of …plastic? Anger withered to be replaced with shock. She held the credit card up to her lips, flaunting it, and her gaze turned mischievous. 

"So, no more of that, eh?" she murmured. If he didn't know any better, he'd have said she seemed proud – of him. Her grin widened behind the card.

"Lunch, then?" 

~~~~

Rowen scraped strawberries and whipped cream onto the small piece of pancake before stabbing it with his fork and chomping into it with relish. He gave a contented sigh as he chewed enthusiastically. 

Across the booth, Mia sat quietly as she huddled into Kento's big down jacket, looking small and sad in the expanse of fabric. The brown green of the jacket turned her skin a sickly, pale shade.  Even the air around her seemed somber. Rowen slowed, watching her pensively as he experienced a moment's regret that he'd teased her. Shaking it off, he took another bite of his fruit-adorned pancakes. Now this was good food! She'd have to cheer up here. What other choice did she have, in his stimulating company?

 "You know," Rowen started, "They used to have the greatest commercials for this." He gestured to his plate. 

Mia mustered up enough interest to respond. "Oh?" she asked politely. She turned away from the window towards her companion. He watched her with mild anticipation, those god-forsaken sunglasses resting on top of his mussed up hair, damp after the dash from car to door.

He nodded, the sunglasses trembling with the movement. "You bet. It had the IHOP guy, you know the IHOP guy? Well, actually neither do I. This guy he's wearing the disguise glasses that look like Groucho Marx – or was it just sunglasses? Anyway he's embarrassed to order this 'cuz it's called Tooty Fruity…"

Mia lost track of Rowen's story as the unrelenting storm again drew her attention. Kento's phone call had completely failed to reassure her. And she was still rattled from the Zeppelin waltz. For a second there, she had entertained the belief that Rowen might actually to be _flirting_ with her. The thought that one of her tenants might be romantically interested in _her_ had never occurred to her before.  

And now that it had, the idea that anyone felt she was worth a flirt was shockingly of the warm and fuzzy variety. 

True – if Rowen had been serious, it would have caused no end of trouble, embarrassment at having to reject him and then _live_ with him being the very least. Yet, it had driven painfully home the truth that her social life consisted of playing mother to a group of retired superheroes. She was too young to be a mother already and not even have had the pleasure of meeting the father! 

So here she was at an IHOP with the sneaky, little rat bastard himself and feeling horribly sorry for herself while trying to pretend that she wasn't. Secretly, Mia admitted that this wasn't just a bad night in a sea of happy days. Lately, there were too many bad nights and bad days. She didn't know why. 

No. No, now that she thought about it she knew exactly why. But – she shouldn't be upset. It wasn't her problem was it?

~~~~

Sage sat rigidly in the passenger seat as Kento pull the seat belt across his chest and lean forward to start the van. For the first time that day, Sage was forced to consider something else besides his own problems. He was mystified by the strange expression that had crossed his friend's face when they met. 

Kento on the other hand, was content to let the silence stretch while he tried to contain the worry that was determined to regain lost ground and then some. It wasn't half so comforting as should have been to know that at least one of his friends was safe. Instead, as soon as he'd seen Sage he'd been struck by the worry, returning hard and fast and worse than before. If Sage were here… than Cye and Ryo and Yuli could not have picked him up and they were still missing. There still wasn't anybody who knew if they were okay. 

Then Sage broke the silence.

"What are you frightened of?" Ah, he got to the point quite impressively.

Kento jumped. He tried to cover it with laughter. "uh…frightened? Heh, where'd you get that one?" He twisted the key in the ignition, but did not shift from park or make any move to begin the drive home.

"You were frightened of something," Sage repeated, sounding cold but concealing a rising dread. As Kento continued to look sheepish while denying the accusation, Sage had a sudden thought. 

"Where's Ryo?" he demanded.

Kento stopped, looking up reluctantly. "We…don't know."

"What?"

"I – well, it's silly. We haven't been able to reach Cye on his cell for about an hour, since before they finished picking up the groceries, and they're pretty damn late picking you up – we got a little worried…" Kento shrugged self-consciously. "When I thought you'd been picked up, worrying seemed kinda stupid, eh?"

"Who is 'we'?"

"Mia n' me."

"Ah. Rowen?"

"Loopy as all hell. I think he has a shit load of math homework."

"Predictable," Sage commented blandly. Rowen's accepted oddities brought the situation back to normality. There wasn't anything _really_ wrong. Or maybe he just couldn't work up the energy to care.

Kento was watching him cautiously. "Listen, are ­_you_ okay, man? You sound like you're straight outta Gundam Wing. It's just a little freaky."

"I don't watch the show."

Kento rolled his eyes. "Omae o korosu," he muttered.

Irritated at the attention, Sage changed the subject. "So we don't have the slightest clue as to where Ryo or Cye is at the moment."

"Nada. And Yuli."

"Oh. Well, that's…lovely," Sage observed for lack of anything better to do. He felt strangely detached from it all. It only made sense that today would end with more rotten luck. He let his head fall back against the headrest. Kento was looking at him strangely again.

"Rowen doesn't think we should worry," Kento said carefully. "Do you?"

Sage didn't even look in his direction. "I don't care."

"What?" Kento spluttered.

"I don't care. Leave me alone," he murmured, voice laced with exhaustion. He turned his head towards the window. "Whether or not we worry, they'll be fine. They always are."

Angry at the callous dismissal, Kento jerked the car into drive. He wrenched the car none too gently in a tight circle towards the front of the school. Sage continued to ignore him. 

Kento exhaled angrily through his nose, giving the impression of an angry bull. Realizing the futility of forcing sense into Sage, he tried to relax, not feeling up to fury at the moment and settling for mild irritation.

It was at this point, while he was lost in thought that the girl jumped out in front of the van. So that even driving slowly, he almost hit her. The van jerked to a halt, ending Sage's brief respite from the world with jolt. 

Kento stared. "It's that girl…"

Sage looked up at the somewhat lacking explanation and felt his relief at Kento's rescue evaporate at the sight of the girl standing, arms spread, in front of the car. This was turning out to be one stunningly horrible day.

He growled again in what was beginning to become something of a habit. "Minako!"

~~~~

Cale rifled through the mail impatiently. It seemed to him that today he had received twice the bills, adds, and catalogs than he had received in all the previous weeks put together. Tensely, he tossed letter after letter aside on the wooden bench underneath the mailboxes. The lobby of the apartment building was mercifully empty of even the occasional resident coming or going. As Cale felt his frightened anticipation, he was relieved to be spared their watching eyes. Months here still hadn't taught him just what was acceptable modern behavior and not worthy of stares or unwanted questions. 

Suddenly he stopped cold as his fingers brushed one particular letter. The one he'd checked the box for every day this week. He'd awaited eagerly, excitedly, but now that it had arrived he felt above all a deep and cutting dread. Clutching it to his chest, he rushed back upstairs, only pausing to sweep up the relevant mail from the discarded catalogs. 

He did not stop until he was shut safely in his room. Sitting on his bed, holding the envelope with frozen fingers, he called upon whatever courage, bravery, or simple recklessness that had made him one of the most feared creatures under Talpa's reign.

And he opened the letter. 

~~~~

Rowen continued babbling cheerfully on. It was oddly reassuring, in a Rowen kind of way. Mia suspected he might actually be cheering her up.

Feeling suddenly perverse, Mia leaned forward over the table, hands clasped in her lap. "So Mr. Hashiba, what does is feel like to be a hero?" she asked casually.

Rowen actually choked on his strawberry. "Mrrrrrmmmff?" he asked politely.

Energy drained as quickly as it had come, Mia sighed and flicked at the zipper on her jacket. "Doesn't it ever bother you that no one remembers, Rowen?" She leaned back again, watching him sadly. It seemed to her that if she thought about it too much she might cry. 

Rowen swallowed his mouthful. "No," he answered honestly. "I mean how could they? Have you ever read a superman comic book? X-men? Do _you_ believe in that stuff?"

"Rowen, you five – you're real. We are not living in a world that superman saved and everyone else forgot," she whispered.

"Ah," Rowen smirked knowingly, "but how would _you_ know, hmm?"

Mia nodded without hearing and gave up on talking to him. She couldn't take the humor anymore. Instead, she huddled into the booth and the down jacket as far as she could go, hiding from her less than perfect world.

Rowen bit his lip, watching her apprehensively. Finally, he seemed to come to a decision and put aside his plate.

"Seriously, Mia, there are no superheroes. We CAN'T exist, hence nobody remembers us."

"Rowen, what are you talking about?"

"Mia, what I'm saying is that as far as the world is concerned, we aren't real. Less than real, because we don't have our own comic, you know? I mean, I know it happened: I was there, I remember it, but these people live in a world where that isn't possible."

Mia's forehead creased in sudden worry. "Rowen – "

Rowen shrugged uncomfortably. "Okay, yeah, I guess it does bother me. But I don't want to undo that. Sure, it's popular. People want heroes. They pay a lot of money for false drama: books, movies, comics, you name it, but that doesn't make this stuff real and I don't want to break what I fought to protect."

"People do want it though, Rowen. That's a form of gratitude, I guess. That news report – I don't know what those girls were if not heroes-to-be."

Rowen snorted angrily. Mia watched in surprise at the unexpected change in the calm. "Imitation heroes-to-be, manufactured-heroes-to-be. Why," he paused, suddenly too furious to speak, "why the _fuck_ can't anyone be heroes themselves? Why do they read about Superman and then be assholes themselves? That's why they forgot us – to make their own heroes. I was hoping they'd do a better job!" He pushed the plate away. It clanged against the table and the silverware, jarring the dense quiet in the midst of the storm.

Mia reached across that table to grip his wrist reassuringly. She wanted to speak, to say something comforting but was interrupted by the waitress refilling their water glasses and bringing their check.

"Heroes, huh?" the petite waitress asked cheerfully. "So what're you guys talkin' about back here? A new movie?"

Rowen answered with surprising cheer. "Oh, a new RPG that's just come out. The Super-Duper Hero Role Playing Game? It's great," he answered easily. They exchanged a few easy sentences on the subject. When she left, he snatched up the check, and flashed Mia a smile. "So, who's paying?"

"Rowen," Mia admonished sternly. She half rose from the table, fixed on him. "Rowen, are you all right?" His smile was deceptively sincere. "What didn't you say?" she asked suspiciously. 

Rowen faltered. Choices flickering across his face, he chose to answer. Mia found the trust he offered to be greater support that anything he had done to cheer her up previously.

"All the damage – everything that happened to this city; it's all gone. Do you see it anywhere? We never repaired it. Nobody did, but it's gone all the same. Sometimes, when I don't have anything else to do I think – and I know its ridiculous, but I can't help thinking about it."

"Thinking what, Rowen?" Mia asked cautiously. She sat down.

He stood there half out of the booth, self consciously trying to struggle through it, like someone trying to explain rocket science to a chipmunk. "It's just," he said finally, slowly. "Hariel's white armor had the power to destroy the world. Not just blow up dirt and rocks. To really, actually destroy the fabric of this dimension. Talpa wanted it to destroy our world and create one in his own image. In the end, Ryo trapped him and we broke open Talpa. Something, some power came out. 

"We thought afterwards that it was just Ryo coming back, but I can't help thinking – what if – what if the armor did what it was supposed to? 

"What if we beat Talpa by creating a world where he wasn't possible?"

~~~~

A bird chirped over his head and a cool breeze ruffled the canvas of the large umbrella over the table. The white plastic chairs were uncomfortable to sit, but they were so much greater than Harrod's misery that they provided a mental comfort quite overcoming the physical. Sekhmet would gratefully have reclined on a bed of rusty nails if it got him away from that horrible store! Here was much, much better. The Café was popular but not so unpleasantly crowded that he found himself actually enjoying the sound of human conversation buzzing in his ears. Occasionally a car would honk on the street or one acquaintance would shout a greeting to another, but traffic was light and the atmosphere was pleasant overall. He breathed deeply in the crisp air and was happy to be outside on so pleasant a day.  

Across the table, his companion shifted in a whisper of silk and smiled. It was a real smile with none of the hidden scheming from before and he fancied that she was enjoying her escape from the department store as much as he. "You seem happy," she said. He nodded absently and his deep embedded guilt did not even object, the present locality comparing so favorably to the previous. Perhaps such dark feelings did not dare brave the unhindered light of the sun shining in a clear sky. 

"Yes," he agreed.  A young blond waiter placed two water glasses on the table but forgot a menu, and he hurried quickly away to retrieve it. Kayura watched his anxiety quizzically with a slight grin of amusement. When he returned, Kayura touched his wrist kindly with her small hand and thanked him politely in Japanese. The mood was so relaxed that the boy was untroubled by the unknown words and speaking English, graciously welcomed her to Britain. He wished her stay here was a pleasant one. Kayura thanked him again when he was through. No doubt each person found the others speech incomprehensible, but Sekhmet was left with the impression that both speakers had understood each other perfectly. In contrast to himself, who was only just able to catch the basic meaning of the boy's greeting, but it did not bother him. Right now, he didn't think anything could.

Content, Sekhmet allowed his eyes to wander, watching the pedestrians that passed the sidewalk Café. Even to his more experienced eyes, the clothes looked strange and unfamiliar. He had not been here for an extended visit in nearly a decade and it seemed fashion still shifted just as easily. A boy, younger than their waiter, perhaps 11 years old, crossed the street hurriedly, a pair of roller blades slung over one shoulder by their knotted laces. His auburn hair and slim face looked slightly familiar to Sekhmet. Maybe he had been one of the people watching Kayura in the department store. Sekhmet watched curiously as tossing his blades over his other shoulder, the boy revealed a string of Japanese kanji painted across his white shirt. Sekhmet wondered if the boy could actually read any Japanese. 

The waiter returned to take their order and Sekhmet had to help Kayura choose from several things she found the less disgusting than the rest. He should have guessed she wouldn't like foreign food; Kayura and compromise did not belong in the same sentence. Then the waiter departed, and they were left to themselves. Kayura allowed the semi-awkward silence to last for a second before she began purposefully making origami with her paper napkin. He watched her industrious folding for a few moments, becoming confused. "Kayura," he finally asked, "what are you making?" She didn't look up, but smiled slightly.

"Talpa," she replied. Sekhmet jerked forward at the name and the bliss his escape from Harrods had brought him evaporated instantly. 

"What?" he asked as he stared at her delicate hands skillfully folding the paper in quick divisions. He movements were haphazard and no clear shape formed. Instead the paper degraded into an ugly mass of rips and tears and Kayura continued folding in sharp deliberate bursts. Sekhmet sat mesmerized and searched the mass in horror for a sign of his master's terrible face. Suddenly, Kayura stopped and examining her indistinct creation, gave a satisfied nod. She dipped her long fingers into her water glass, and flicked her fingers, splattering water across its paper form. Together they watched as the flimsy napkin almost dissolved in the liquid, turning an indiscriminate ashy gray. 

Finally, Kayura looked away and up. When Sekhmet was finally able to tear his gaze away he found himself looking at her eyes as she watched him. There was something vaguely malevolent in them. "Did that bother you?" she asked bluntly.

"What-" Sekhmet swallowed. "What was that?"

Kayura glanced at the soggy mess and her gaze turned contemptuous. "Talpa. I didn't get to kill him," she said. "Now, I do!"

Sekhmet was unexpectedly angry. "No. No, you did that just to upset _me._"

She stopped and twisted a finger in her hair, almost embarrassed. There was a pause. "Yes," she admitted. "I'm sorry." Suddenly, she frowned. Dropping her hands from her hair, she slapped them down against the table palm flat. Water droplets from the Talpa-napkin puddle sprayed Sekhmet's face. "You never speak to me except to shout. So I made you angry. It seemed the logical way to talk to you!"

Sehkmet clenched his teeth shut against an angry response. He hissed through his teeth, snarling quietly, "Stop playing with – "

"You? I've noticed you taking a stand now. Are you certain you want to do that?" she inquired sweetly. "Do you know what you did in that store?"

"No. What?" he snapped.

She smiled. "You chose personal comfort over guilt for your crimes."

As always the mention of guilt hit hard, twisting his anger around into shame and a burning sense of his own inadequacy. Kayura was right to censure him. 

Instead she lashed out violently in a manner rather unexpected.

"You dolt! Don't you dare turn back into that simpering lump of useless flesh you've been for the last two years!"

He stared. 

"It's taken this long and a lot of painful mucking about to force that idea into you. I thought today was going a little to far, but you are _dense_, you know that? Guilt, schmilt. If you must atone for you past, then be what you were not – human." She dropped the harsh tone, saying kindly, "No one demanded this lifelessness."

Having no response, Sekhmet let a silence descend upon the table. He stared fixedly at the disintegrated napkin, knowing that Kayura would be ready to meet his gaze piercingly if he should dare to raise his eyes. He was not certain what to think of this. The iron determination from earlier was nowhere to be found. 

In the midst of this thoughtful brooding, Kayura gave a little "Oh!" of surprise. Curious, Sehkmet looked up. 

The familiar boy was standing next to their table, forehead scrunched up in a thoughtful frown and roller blades dangling from his left hand. He was watching Sekhmet's face intensely and barely seemed to realize that the table's occupants had noticed him. Sekhmet had enough time for a moment's dread before the child's concentration broke into a high-pitched cry of glee. Then, to Sekhmet's horror and ultimate confusion, the child took a step forward and flung his arms around the warlord's neck. "Oh, Uncle Christopher!" he cried in accented Japanese, "It is you!" 

End Chapter 6.

~~~~

All right. As warned, things may be revised. After maryd's review for this chapter, I decided to fix a few things. I realized that something's weren't clear with Kento and Sage and I didn't like the way some parts of the Rowen and Mia scene read. Also added some need punctuation in places.

In the previous chapter Kento was frightened on seeing Sage. The reason was meant to be revealed in this chapter but I may have been too vague. Kento is frightened because when he sees Sage he realizes that Ryo didn't pick him up like Minako said. This means that unlike he told Mia, Ryo and Cye are still missing and he gets really worried again. Kapeesh? Yay. 

  
Melee 

Okay. This did take a month. Wow. I'm afraid this chapter got more serious in some parts because I randomly a couple nights ago turned out like ten pages of another ronin fic, completely unrelated to this one. It was…weird. So I'm still stuck in that rut. Oops. Of course you'll never see that one because I have no idea what's up with it and there's no one who ever wants to help me edit and critique my fics before I post them. So I don't have the faintest idea if anyone would like this thing. It sux, man. Oh well, just won't post it. That was simple.

Now on to the reviews to which I give responses that are longer than the review. LoooooooooSER.

**Svelte Rose**: Thankies. I repeat that I don't write romance (for my safety and yours). Minako is _not_ Sage's type. I guess I should say that I won't tell what happens with Minako and Sage. Since the story isn't finished and I'm not good with long term planning (up until yesterday morning the last Rowen and Mia scene was meant to be about Ryo's tendency towards depression) I guess they COULD get together. I will say, though this is irrelevant, that I will never pair Sage up with Mia, not even if hell _does_ freeze over. Ooh, or Sage with Touma. I can't STAND either of those. Um…not that you cared. Uh…bye. Thanks again? I really like Sage (when he isn't a jack ass) and Ryo though…

**Maryd: **Oh, you'll review this chapter too won't you? It's a little more serious but strangely twice as loopy. ANYWAY. Thanks for the great review. Why did I name that chapter Rocket to the Moon? Well originally it was supposed to be starting some sort of climax. It was also supposed to refer to how it looked like everything was okay but in reality more people are getting lost and already lost people are getting more lost. So everyone just gets 'rocketed' away, y'know. Okay, fine. It was because I thought it sounded cool. I hope that the more serious tone in this chapter didn't ruin the fun, fun pair of Rowen and Mia that you liked. What did you think about that? Their last line was just a thought that struck me and I really liked. 

Oooh, Cye is the one I'm utterly sure I'm always screwing up. Double yay!

**Skywolf:  **Still no Mary Sues. Hope I didn't make you wait too, too long. You know, I am having trouble keeping focused on this one. Maybe I _should_ write an epic though I worry about what I'd screw up with _that_ one. This is random enough. Woohoo! (random shout of joy). 


	7. Brightly Flashing Lights May Be a Bad Si...

(insert disclaimer here)

Monkey see, Monkey do

Part I: The Long Trip Home

~~~~

Uncle CHRISTOPHER? Oh, dear. I don't – this is really exhausting me. I mean, whooo! That one's a doozy.   

What's that saying, you know, watch out for that first step it's a –

No! Oh no… Watch out!

~~~~

CHAPTER 7: Brightly Flashing Lights May Be a Bad Sign

~~~~

Ryo stared mournfully at the closed doors. Yuli tugged futilely on the door handle. Cye raged. 

"How could this _happen_? They were open then minutes ago! We were _here_!" 

Ryo sighed, eyes running across the storefronts and their dark interiors. The strip mall was uniformly closed, Cye's cell phone was out of batteries, and there wasn't any way in sight to call for help. 

"Jeez, you guys are _screwed_." 

Cye jumped, Ryo blinked, and Yuli froze with one foot raised to kick at the glass door. "Chou!" Yuli supplied helpfully.

Chou sniffed and shoved his hands into the pockets of a painfully orange raincoat. He swallowed, blushing slightly. "Uh…I live kinda close…um…you could come over, if you wanna," he said, staring self-consciously at the ground. 

Cye glanced at Ryo. Ryo shrugged. There was a pause as Yuli stared at them both hopefully. 

Then Ryo swung one arm out towards the dark and rainy parking lot, surrendering the stage with one gallant gesture. "Lead the way, kid," he said with a grin.

~~~~

"Minako," Sage snarled from the passenger seat. Kento jumped a bit at that, wondering who the hell she was that Mr. Cold and Icy was getting so worked up.  

Come to think of it, she _had_ known Sage when he'd talked to her. Kento wondered if he should know her? He watched the dark haired girl carefully as she strode up to the side of the van and wrenched the door open. Without hesitation she climbed in, closed the door on the storm, and sitting primly regarded Kento without a word.  

Kento twisted around in the driver's seat to stare at her. She stared back unabashed. 

"Don't you have something you should be doing?" Sage asked nastily. His gaze never wavered from quickly working windshield wipers and the pouring rain while his voice was at best frigid if not murderous.

Minako didn't even glance his way, but Kento was certain he saw her eye twitch. The beginnings of a headache were starting to creep in behind his eyes. 

"Sorry," she apologized to Kento, not to Sage, "I was wondering, could I have a ride?"

Sage snorted, slouching slightly in studied indifference.

Minako's face went from pale to scarlet faster than Kento would have thought possible. He could _hear_ Minako's teeth grinding. "Or," she asked with painful sweetness, "do you only transport assholes?"

Kento's jaw dropped. "Um…I'm sorry, do I know you?" he managed finally.

Now Minako looked surprised. In the midst of staring stubbornly out the window, Sage froze. His head jerked around to give Kento a look like a rabbit frozen by headlights. Kento was stuck looking from one to the other, clueless. Then Minako smiled, a slow feral smile as her face faded back to its normal color. 

"Oh, didn't you know?" she asked pleasantly. "He's my boyfriend."

It was a simple enough statement. For a moment Kento stared, then as Sage watched in horror, he started shake, biting his lip in a futile effort at self-control. A wordless guffaw broke free. Soon he was laughing uproariously like someone who'd never heard a joke before in his life. 

Minako loved it.

~~~~

"Sekhmet…" Kayura warned. He ignored her, dragging the small woman behind him as they fled through the crowds that littered the ground below the steel skyscrapers.

When he failed to respond she narrowed her eyes. She waited for three patient seconds before simply leaning back with her entire weight and refusing to move her legs.  Sekhmet jerked backwards as she suddenly became a lead weight dragging him down. His death grip on her elbow nearly ripped her arm from its socket. 

He rounded on her furiously. "What?" he snapped.

She regarded him calmly before glancing thoughtfully back the way they had come. Then she looked back at him with eyes like steel. 

"Uncle _Christopher?" _she demanded with no small amount of irritation.

In response, Sekhmet snarled, tightened his grip, and whirled to drag her through the crowds once more. 

~~~~

Rain pounded against body and pavement alike. It hadn't seemed possible, but the rain had gotten worse.  Yuli trudged on alongside Cye, huddled in the shadow of a larger body. Ryo's dejected and utterly soaked form followed after while Chou, in his glaringly bright orange raincoat, led the way. Above them, the rain and the thick clouds combined to form a threatening almost-darkness. 

They were walking along the road that passed by the strip mall and the farmers market, moving farther away from civilization into a stretch where the road was surrounded only by trees and mud.  Up ahead, the road took a sharp turn around which trees and storm made it impossible to see what was coming. Cye eyed it warily, hesitant to let four pedestrians just jog around such an effective blind. 

Then Chou stopped. Pointing one finger imperiously across the street, he shouted over the storm, "That's a shortcut! We're going through there!"

Cye stared skeptically at the darkness in between the trees. "There?" he repeated loudly.

But Chou was already dashing across the road without so much as a glance for traffic. Cye blanched. Thank god the road really was deserted. He leapt for Yuli when the boy made as if to follow. Clamping his arms around him, Cye pulled him back with a jerk. 

"Don't even – think – about it!" he warned dangerously.  He saw that Ryo was also reaching out towards Yuli and would have pulled him back in Cye had not.  For the moment, his confidence in Ryo as a responsible guardian was…mildly restored. Thunder crashed as lighting lit up the sky. 

Glancing both ways with narrowed, hawk-like eyes, Cye locked his hand on Yuli's and walked them both across the street. Ryo followed at a more leisurely pace, glancing about with curious blue eyes and not having nearly enough caution on the wide expanse of pavement with so little visibility.

Chou was waiting on the other side, ankle deep in mud and not seeming to notice or care. Cye winced as he stepped in after him. 

"Yick," Yuli said, nose wrinkling. Cye could barely hear him with the rain drumming in his ears, but he emphatically agreed. 

Ryo jogged the last few feet of the road to catch up with them. There still weren't any cars. As his foot stepped into the mud, Chou suddenly gave a cry of surprise and almost dashed back onto the road. Startled, Ryo lunged to the side to block him. 

"Whoa! What's up?" Ryo asked, flinging his arms out to form a sort of temporary wall.

Chou pointed back at the road. "I dropped my dinosaur!" Ryo looked back and sure enough he could just make out a small something in the road that was about the right size for a small dinosaur toy. Ryo watched it for a moment. Then he took Chou by the shoulders and turned him around towards Cye.

"Okay," he said. "I'll go get it." Then he walked back into the road. Cye was okay with that, agreeing that Chou shouldn't be left to go get it himself. In fact, he approved completely. He was so okay with it that he even turned his back on Ryo to begin to look for a path through the trees, forgetting Ryo completely.

At first he put the buzzing in his head down to the ever-present roar of the pounding rain, but the dizziness he couldn't ignore. The minute he stopped searching the woods to consider it, it overwhelmed him. He felt like he was the rain, stuck inside each individual drop pounding against mud and tree and road. Around him thunder rumbled.

The feeling changed…

…he was drumming against metal…

…the beaten hood of an old truck…

…a reckless driver going much too fast… 

… and coming up on a blind curve in the rain...

He recognized the feeling suddenly, what was pulling him in. 

Torrent. A warning.

It hit him hard and he was too long in recovering. Everything seemed to pull at him as he tried to turn. The raincoat was too heavy and the mud too grasping. Even the air thickened to slow his progress. 

…_No_…

Maybe it was just the unimaginable weight of his dread that didn't want to turn, didn't want him to _see_ what he knew was about to happen – but slowly, much too slowly, he did turn. __

Around the bend the fast falling drops suddenly lit up, looking like an impossible, solid block of oncoming rain.

_No_.

Headlights. 

And Ryo was bent down in the middle of the road, oblivious, picking up a stupid, worthless toy. 

_No!_

 Cye screamed out, but the water was too loud and his voice was too soft. He was too slow – too useless – and yet he had to try – 

"Ryo…!"

~~~~

Pain lanced through Sage's head with all the subtlety of the Spanish Inquisition catching him completely by surprise. He lurched forward with an agonized cry until the seat belt across his chest slammed him back. Green light blossomed behind his eyes, stilling the pain and rushing to bring calm back to his mind.

He slumped there in the seat with tears coming to his eyes as Kento's laughter faded into shock and even Minako failed to gloat. 

Something was horribly, horribly wrong.

~~~~

Rowen leaned nonchalantly against the counter while the cashier rang up their dinner. He favored Mia with a brilliant smile. "Well that's what keeps ME up at night. How about you?"

Mia sighed, unimpressed. "I …I want there to be heroes. Melodramatic I guess, but it just seems so cruel that you fought and now everyone has forgotten. I can't – it just depresses me." 

The cashier hid an inquisitive look with a flick of her short hair. She thought they were nuts.

Rowen turned his smile on her. "Lines for a play," he grinned.

The cashier gave them her weird ass look again, adding on a noncommittal shrug.

Mia sighed forlornly. Rowen heard her. 

"Ah, don't tell me _that_ got you depressed!" he said incredulously.

Mia smacked him.

It was Rowen's turn to sigh. "Look, I never wanted to be famous," he said. "This is my life the way I want it. I _know_ that and it helps."

Mia nodded absently but didn't really reply.

"Mia?"

"No. No, you're right," Mia assured him. She made a sudden decision. "This is my life and it _is_ the way I want it."

"Then I guess life is good!" Rowen gave her another irrepressible grin.

As she retrieved her change and they turned away from the cashier, Mia forced a smile but couldn't resist one last melancholy mutter. "Just promise that you'll help me _remember_ that."

In response, Rowen impulsively swept her up into a crushing hug, making her gasp in surprise. For the first time that day, life felt like it might just be worth living. She laughed.

End Chapter 7.

~~~~

Ah heh…so…

Okay. FINE. I have a weakness for melodrama. Bite me.

Melee

**Maryd**:

Thankies again. Dais isn't doing anything even relevant to the plot at this point. Something about an ex-girlfriend or whatever.

            As for Sage's dread, well…um…I think that was resolved nicely, don't you?


	8. Where the Hell is My Tiger?

(insert disclaimer here)

Monkey see, Monkey do

Part I: The Long Trip Home

~~~~

Only Mimi would write a story without knowing what happens next. Ha! 

Don't give me that face. You and her both, you think I have no compassion. I have plenty of compassion – I want Ryo's sexy ass intact as much as the next girl. Hmm... is Mimi diabolical enough to kill him off just to spite me? 

Well, she is getting trickier. She tried to hide her laptop from me today... ME! 

I laugh at her.

~~~~

CHAPTER 8: Where the Hell Is My Tiger? 

~~~~

Kento gripped Sage's shoulder as his friend sagged in his seat. "Sage?" the earth ronin sounded almost panicky.

Minako was simply too shocked to react, only watching as Sage gasped, attempting to speak.

"Did something happen? Sage, did something happen?" Kento demanded anxiously, suspecting and fearing a more supernatural cause to the collapse. 

Sage scrambled to regain some fraction of self-control. While his breath slowly came back to him, he tried franticly to decipher just what had happened. That done, he turned to Kento suddenly, in lost confusion. 

"No... Nothing happened!"

~~~~

Ryo looked up at the cry, eyes meeting Cye's for one confused instant before he looked up into the lights of the truck barreling toward him. 

Cye's heart stopped. It seemed at that _instant_ of time that Ryo might be quick enough, smart enough to run off the road, that he wouldn't die a horrible, horrible bloody death right here, right now in front of Cye's terrified eyes. In that moment Cye urged silently, _Do something, Ryo!_

But Ryo didn't move out of the way. He just stood up slowly, in a daze. 

And the truck hit.

Cye clasped his hand over his mouth, as he let out a little anguished cry. His eyes shut tight against the aftermath he didn't want to see and against the tears he could feel leaking out, mixing indistinguishably with the rain. Numbly he felt Yuli next to him, small hand gripping Cye's pant leg in terror. Cye was deathly afraid that it would fall to him to speak first. 

Strangely enough, it didn't.

"Jeez, Cye. Breath, would you?" came the frantic, concerned voice, oddly clear through the roar of the rain.

Cye's eyes flew open to see Ryo walking across the pavement towards him, untouched with eyes wide and face worried. In one hand he held the small dinosaur toy. "Cye, are you okay?"

"Am _I_ okay?" Cye managed to gasp. There didn't seem to be any breath in his lungs. "Of course I'm not okay! The truck – what – you – how?" he finally squeaked, far too shocked for coherency. His heart was beating like he'd just run a marathon. He couldn't seem to get his breath.

Ryo blinked, then glanced behind him before looking back at Cye. "It was on the left side of the road, Cye – I...uh...wasn't?"

The idea was for a moment incomprehensible. Slowly, Cye turned his eyes to the spot on the pavement where the toy had dropped, the spot that was ever so slightly on the _other_ side of the median of the road. 

Enough so that if Ryo had been bound and blindfolded, the truck _still_ would have passed him by. 

~~~~

Cale flicked distractedly at the string of the tea bag draped over the side of the cardboard cup. He leaned his face over the steaming liquid and breathed deeply but even the sweet smelling aroma of the hot tea couldn't calm his jittery nerves. Arriving after the lunchtime rush, Cale was pleased as usual to find the popular coffee shop mostly deserted. 

He drummed absent fingers quickly against the wood and attempted to read the morning paper that had been left on the table. Unfortunately, even when he wasn't stressed, written English wasn't his best subject. 

"Eh...Cale. So, you start tomorrow?" a casual voice asked.

Cale jumped, jarring the table and sloshing hot water onto the paper. He turned terrorized eyes towards the tall young waiter. A local College student who worked part time, Kevin Minor probably thought Cale wasn't more than few years his senior. He tended to buddy up with Cale in a most disconcerting way. 

Well, Cale admitted, talking to the younger student _did_ help his English.

"...Yes," he admitted with a nervous smile. "Yes, tomorrow's the day."

~~~~

Minako was shaken. A second ago, the beaten old van had been thick with the petty tension born of short-lived high school romance. It had degraded with frightening speed into something unbelievable and incomprehensible but undeniably grave. 

There was something _wrong_ with Sage. He'd just collapsed like that, with a cry of real pain. Nausea tangled with fear to push her off balance, and she didn't bother with dignity. "Sage...are you okay?" It sounded painfully inadequate.

Until Sage flipped her the bird without even a passing glance. 

His friend in the driver's seat gaped at the gesture. Minako herself hadn't thought Sage capable of it.

Still, insults were back in the realm of familiar. With an irritated short, Minako fell back in her seat, determined to let her ungrateful boyfriend handle his own problems.

Kento became aware that Minako really presented a problem. With her in the car Sage was pissed and upset – my god, had he really just flicked her off? Must get this girl's name and number- and Kento would never be able to grill him properly about what the hell had just happened. 

Which brought up another worry. What did _she_ think was going on? With any luck, she would think it was a migrane or something. A really hard-hitting, stealth ninja migrane. He cleared his throat nervously. "Er...so where do you live?"

Minako turned a calculating glare his way. After a moment, she smiled charmingly. Kento raised an eyebrow at that. Obviously, she wasn't through giving Sage hell. "About fifteen minutes away. Of course, I'd be happy to give directions." 

~~~~

Mia walked out into the rain, carefully holding her hood up with one hand and pretending Rowen wasn't _staring_ at her like he was deciding whether or not he wanted that puppy in the window. 

Behind her, Rowen bit his lip to hide a sudden, smirking grin.

Then he tackled her. Her hood fell down, her coat that she'd not bother to zip flew open, and cold, icy rain hit her head and front. "Yeeeeeee!" she squealed in shock.  

Rowen ducked away, cackling and highly satisfied. His jacket was tightly fastened though his head was uncovered and therefore already wet.  

Clutching the edges of her coat closed, Mia swore that if she'd actually fallen, she would have killed him. Almost as an afterthought she swung a foot at the puddle under her feet, shoe turned sideways to shovel the water towards him.

The spray arced up in a wave that broke over him in a most gratifying manner. His pants, which had previously been mostly spared by the rain, were now soaked through. 

Rowen winced from the cold, but looked, more than anything, impressed in spite of himself. 

They stood there in a silent tableau until Mia raised one finger to point at him wordlessly and started laughing. 

Rowen grinned and Mia realized that it wasn't just temporary. She was cold, she was wet, she had been assaulted in front of a Pancake House, and now she standing in a puddle in the rain. 

No wonder she'd been cheered up.

And the rain...was it letting up a bit?

~~~~

When Cye fell silent, not having anything else to say, Chou readily filled in the gap.

"That was so...cool!" he cried in awe.

Ryo spared Chou a puzzled glance, naturally failing to grasp any sort of danger or excitement as long as it was _his_ life on the line. Idiot. Self-consciously, he tried to run his fingers through hair that rain had plastered to his scalp. 

"Uh, yeah...maybe?" he said absently while he peered nervously at the other Ronin through wet bangs and dripping eyelashes. "Cye?" he ventured. Cold rain continued to fall, dripping down through the branches. 

Cye glared.

"Why are you taking care of _me_?" he burst out. "I'm just – you almost – I thought – you're the one who... Christ!"

"Yeah, Cye, but...I'm fine," Ryo said with a small, frustrated frown.

"Maybe so! But – but – You know what, Ryo?"

"No?"

Cye leaned forward, narrowed eyes intent on Ryo's face. "That's the first time – _ever_ – in your life that you've said that and it's been true," he accused.

Cye got sort of a pouty glare for that. The everyday reaction brought the other possibility into sharp relief, the possibility of a broken body spread across the road.  Cye stepped forward and locked both hands onto the front of Ryo's sweatshirt, pulling Yuli with him where the younger boy was clutching Cye's pant leg.

"Ryo," Cye started weakly though he had vaguely meant to be threatening, "just..." he hiccupped and the rest came out in a tearful rush, "just don't-ever-do-that-again!" 

That surprised Ryo. He opened his mouth as if to reply but only nodded numbly.

"...okay...?" Cye finished lamely. His energy was spent. He sort of fell forward and let Ryo catch him in wonderful platonic, brotherly love type of hug that made everything all right. Ryo's sweatshirt was damp and uncomfortable against his cheek, but it was all so real and so marvelously _not_ mashed up by a large, fast moving truck. 

"Bloody idiot," Cye sniffed.

They passed a few minutes like that in the trees that offered paltry sheltered from the rain and in the mud that sucked stubbornly at their shoes. Yuli remained attached to Cye's leg while Chou watched in objective fascination. Cye finally pulled himself together and away from Ryo, blushing in embarrassment and urging them to continue because the rain wasn't letting up and they really ought to get home soon, you know.

Even so, Cye walked with one hand in a death grip on Ryo's sleeve. He'd recovered his self control maybe, but there was not a chance he would be letting go anytime soon. Not until he was completely recovered from his little heart attack, thank you very much. And until then, Ryo could just – could just – 

Well, he could just deal with it.

End Chapter 8.

~~~~

You weren't really...worried were you? I mean, I say 'a weakness for melodrama' but this is me. I have a weakness for romance too. You saw that in the little waltz scene, didn't you?  X__x.

This chapter was shorter. Oh well. One more left to go. 

Lemons are yucky. They're sour and taste bad and I have no idea why people squeeze them over seafood.

Melee

**Nagia-** Well, hello! You're the first constructive criticism I've gotten. Too many people who could offer advice don't post reviews or feel that reviews should only say very good things. Thanks very so much. 

And thanks for the suggestions. The hints _do_ have a place in the plotline... My problem is that, while I have plotted out the story generally and the chapters ahead of time, the story has still changed drastically as it went on. This was much more of a farce when it began than it is now. However, I plan to finish it anyway (not much longer now!) and then work on those revisions I threatened. Fix it up, make it coherent.

Today ff.net, tomorrow the world!

Maryd- 1) Sekhmet has innumerable personal problems that aren't necessarily serious but that he handles about as well as Heero Yuy. 

2) Kento, like the rest of the ronins, knows Sage better than most everybody. He is laughing because the idea is frankly absurd. And he's right. Do those two look like a healthy relationship to _you_?

3) Ah yes, I'm really beginning to like messing around with Rowen and Mia.

4) HURT RYO? HURT RYO? I did NOT! Sheesh, I thought you'd have been a little suspicious at least.

5) Kay and the Warlords aren't part of the main plot, but I have to cover them because there will be a test later. The Ronin plot will conclude whether or not I get around to closing whatever our little x-cons have been doing.

**Svelte** **Rose- **Ah...Mia, Mia, Mia. I'm actually a Ryo/Mia fan, but more often than not Ryo/Mia fics annoy me. I love reading fics that are persuasive enough to convince me of a couple I wouldn't have believed before. "Ronin Summer" for example, has Mia/Sekhmet...it was like the greatest thing I've ever read. And Broken Symmetry's Ryo/Kento! Oh my god...(dies happy)

Still I have my snobbish habits. I dislike Anubis/Mia ~ die! And stay dead! and most Sage/Mia_._ However, I would like to read a good Rowen/Mia fic or even one where it's a _possibility_. Without one, I'm not too fond of the couple...Suggestions? 

**Kit** **Cat** **Bar- **You _don't_ want to ask how many times I looked at your name before I saw the candy reference. You really don't.

Poor Ryo, you say? Eh...I'm not much for long angsty hospitalization sequences (because I can't write serious drama)...because Ryo would be all beaten up and hooked to machines...and I like my Ryo pretty...


	9. Winding Down

(insert disclaimer here)

A (not very) quick note: this afternoon someone emailed me and asked me (after admitting to extreme embarrassment at emailing me, but, she said, it absolutely couldn't be helped) to PLEASE update this. I rattled off a naturally, spectacularly charming reply along the lines of "I'm busy, busy, busy, the story isn't even half written, here's a fiction link to distract you."

Then, to my shock and horror, I sat down and wrote the one chapter that I couldn't possibly seem to finish in its entirety. _I_ think it's really cool. So kudos to Kit Kat Bar. Obviously bothering the hell out of me is the way to go! (Okay, she didn't bother me at all. I loved hearing that someone was agonizing or me. ME! Wahahahahaaaa...! You should all do this more often. Good for your health.)

Monkey see, Monkey do

Part I: The Long Trip Home

~~~~

I wish Hana would leave me alone sometimes. 

I just...I just like happy endings.

~~~~

CHAPTER 9: Winding Down

~~~~

Mia turned the car towards home. There was something...odd about the drive. The whole atmosphere felt odd. She was almost giddy.

Rowen put in a cheerful CD, soft and pleasant, and everything turned peaceful. Even the rain.

If you want to sing out, sing out! If you want to be free, be free!

He grinned at her when she glanced his way.

Forget heroes, she thought. What good is drama anyway?

~~~~

Sage watched stoically through the car window as they pulled up to the red-painted house. Minako flounced out of the van and hopefully out of his life... at least for now. Kento watched through the dwindling rain. He glanced curiously at Sage, but Halo was not particularly interested.

With a sigh, and a few muttered complaints, Kento started to back the car out of the driveway.

Sage sat up straighter and frowned. "Kento!"

Kento looked up. As the door opened to let Minako in, a small child looked out and dashed into the rain. 

"Yuli?" Kento asked in disbelief. He turned off the car and opened the door.

The last of the rain turned to drizzle and stopped. Yuli ran up, happy and excited. "Kento! Kento! What are you _doing _here?" The car door clicked as Sage got out.

"What am _I_ doin-" but Yuli wasn't interested. He tugged frantically on Kento's arm. 

"It was raining and raining and I got lost...until Ryo found me. You couldn't see _anything_. Cye was pissed as all hel...um...heck! And then Chou took us to his house, which is here (duh!), and got hot cocoa stuff. It utterly rocks! Chou has playstation. But the cocoa was good since Ryo got hit by a car!" Yuli took a breath. He looked curiously up at Kento, asking, "Um...did you get our message?"

Kento needed a moment to sift through that. What?

Coming around the van, Sage questioned softly, "Ryo got hit by a car?"

"What!" Kento roared surging towards the house.

Yuli started. "Um..."

The front door opened again and Minako came back out, faint confusion painting her pretty face. A mug of cocoa in hand, Ryo came after, blue eyes wide with surprise and interest at their arrival. 

He looked devastatingly healthy. 

Cye walked briskly behind them both. His face was sad and unfriendly.  

"Mina!" Yuli waved happily. 

Sage asked again, looking at Ryo. "You got hit by a car?" 

Ryo stopped, and flushed somewhat adorably. "Well...no..." he seemed uncertain about continuing, instead glancing cautiously back at Cye who walked past him to Kento.

"We've had a horrible day," Cye said, stopping in front of Kento. "There's a bit of a lake around Mia's car. We ran into Yuli's friend, Chou, who helpfully," here Cye frowned and paused. Something about calling Chou helpful didn't seem quite right, "_helpfully_ invited us to use his phone. Did you get the message?"

Kento looked to Sage and shrugged. "No."

"No way. You lucky bastards," Minako murmured. "Chou's my brother." She gave them all a last once over. Perhaps her eyes lingered on Sage, but not for long. She took Ryo's mug from him and went back into the house, mystery solved. The door shut behind her with an air of finality.

"Um...should we thank them or something?" Ryo asked, watching the door apprehensively. 

"No, I did," Cye said numbly. He shivered. "Let's...just go home please?" He waved Yuli towards the van and followed, pulling Ryo protectively behind him by the wrist. 

Sage raised a curious eyebrow. Kento ignored him. "Cye?"

Ryo turned and managed to gesture with his one free hand that Kento should drop it and Ryo would explain later.

Kento wasn't satisfied but he reached for the door handle anyway. Sage got in on the other side.

The ride was mostly silent. Kento only broke it once, after dropping Yuli home. He cleared his throat. 

"So why didn't you call?"

Ryo looked up as if suddenly remembering. "Yeah, why not?" he asked Cye.

Cye pulled the beleaguered little cell phone out of his pocket. "It died," he said simply. "Kind of stupid, huh?" he whispered.

"...Yeah," Ryo said, certain that there had been a right and a wrong answer to that. He'd probably picked the wrong one. "It's okay, Cye." He gave Cye a half-hearted pat on a weary shoulder.

There was a tiger waiting at the back door when they got home. He lunged to his feet as they arrived. The inquisitive head-butt nearly knocked Ryo over. Cye, still attached at the wrist, steadied him. 

The tiger snorted and snuffled at his charge's clothing. Some hidden test was passed and the tiger trotted off into the damp night.

"Okay, 'Blaze. Uh...Bye." Ryo blinked. "He's kinda moody, isn't he?" Cye stirred from lethargy to glare at him.

"You," he declared archly, "aren't worth worrying about."

"Maybe you shouldn't then," Ryo sounded miffed.

Kento wanted to smack some sense into both of them, but he honestly hadn't the faintest what was going on. 

Jeez. At least they were home, weren't they?

Sage rolled his eyes, and shooed them all into the house.

~~~~

Cale stared and the office-type building that rose above the street. Here it was. No second thoughts now.

Swallowing his traitorous nerves, Cale hefted the book bag onto his should and walked in the office, all thoughts fixed on the letter in his back pocket.

Time to start life over again, if he could.

~~~~

In the flickering darkness of Mia's house, Sean Connery, strange special effects, and Japanese subtitles played rough on the television screen. Rowen was entranced, but Mia glanced up at the opening door and Kento's entrance into the small T.V. room. 

She stood quickly with relief when Ryo, Sage, and Cye followed after. Rowen who had never been really worried, stayed on the couch. To him, the heroes' return was something of a non-event. 

"Bond?" Kento asked, interested. 

"Yeah," Rowen replied. "Connery is the only one worth his stuff. Hey, sit down." He waved a hand at the open couch and the armchair on the other side of the room. 

Mia huffed impatiently. "Oh, who cares about that! Ryo, Cye get in here. You wouldn't believe how worried we've been. What a stupid storm, making us silly." She waved them past the doorway.

Kento grinned, gave her a playful shove. "Heh, dork, you were worried?" Kento got a slap on the arm for that, soon ended as Mia leapt to engulf Ryo in a hug worthy of the earth Ronin. 

She released Ryo and stopped at Cye's morose expression.

"Do you know," he sniffed, with offended horror and a pointed glance in Ryo's direction, "what he did?"

Mia glanced at Ryo questioningly. Ryo half rolled his eyes, but still blushed. "No...I don't. What _did_ he do?" she asked in polite confusion.

So Cye poured out the whole dramatic story in heart-wrenching melodramatic detail. "I thought," he ended on a mystified plea, running a hand through his hair weakly, "that I was going to strangle him!"

Mia was the perfect audience. The two of them engaged in a brief cult of Ryo-worry where he would not worry about himself. Ryo ignored them out of irritation and some embarrassment, throwing himself into the old chair near Rowen's sprawled figure at the end of the couch.

As the drama unfolded, both onscreen and off, Rowen watched and cackled. Sage listened with veiled interested. He did not, however, manage to dredge up any concern about something over and done. Something that hadn't even happened. 

He remembered the brief touch of cold fear that Yuli's excited ramblings had wakened. That was enough for him, though Ryo's idiot lack of common sense usually irritated him. 

But then again the story was actually kind of...funny. He almost smiled. 

Cye noticed. Noticed and stalked over to where Sage still waited just inside the door. "It isn't funny!" he insisted. 

And against his better judgment, Sage looked up and favored Cye with a bright, but cautious smile. "_I_ think it is."

Cye was at a loss for words. Finally he threw up his hands. "Oh I give up!" he said. Sage allowed himself a quiet laugh.

Kento shared a knowing look with Sage before grabbing a couch cushion and tossing it to the carpet by Ryo's chair. He sprawled out on the ground, content with a job well done. 

Mia was still distraught, the worry of the storm not quite faded.

"Hey, come on. It's all better _now_!" Rowen protested finally and leaping up to grasp Mia about her hips, he pulled her back down onto the couch. 

She landed nearly on him, pushing him away indignantly with a startled cry. Cye joined her ruefully as expensive cars and impressive explosions blossomed on the screen.

"Shhh...," Kento counseled, "this is the best part!"

The room grew silent and attentive.

~~~~

"So who was he?" Kayura asked one more time, standing on the suburban street, the downtown bustle left behind.

"Who was he?" Sekhmet repeated tonelessly.

"Your 'nephew', yes." Kayura's eyes locked onto his face while he, for his part, kept his gaze elsewhere.

"I don't want to talk about it."

She was skeptical. "You don't want to talk about it," she said.

Sekhmet let out a heavy sigh. "We sound like a broken record. 

Kayura frowned. "Record?"

"Yes. Nevermind. I _don't_ want to talk about it. And," he paused, gathering his strength, "and that's that."

"Alright," Kayura agreed. He didn't believe for a second that she was actually giving up.

"So..." he said awkwardly.

"So lets go home." Turning, she raised her hand to call the gate that would briefly break the seal between the two worlds. Whatever their little field trip had been, whatever consequences it would have, it was over now. Time to go home.

End Chapter 9.

The end.

~~~~

Well, that worked out better than I'd thought it would.

I kid you not: this was conceived with three original young magic-wielding females, supernatural bad guys, and at least one romance. (sigh) Needless to say, _that_ didn't last. As such, this really is pretty directionless in parts. 

AND AMAZINGLY CONTRADICTORY! Cye's cell phone (in so many ways), the time difference between Japan and England, the newscast that just fades away, and above all – Mimi! Hana! 

I've admitted in the second chapter that Mimi meets the Ronins. ...Wait, I'm pledged to write in a Mary Sue? (sighs) 

Huh. Go figure.  

There may be a sequel. Interested?

P.S. if that newscast bugs you unbearably, email me. I might tell all.

Maybe I'll even finish that other thing I started. Ohhh, look at Ryo's widdle fuzzy-wuzzy kitten ears!

Actually you haven't gotten to the part with the ears yet...

Melee

P.S. I didn't reply to any reviews this time. If you leave your email address, be warned that I _will_ reply. If you, however, actually WANT me to, go ahead. Or be anonymous. It's a free country, damn it all! ~__^


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